Tulane Women's Golf Fires 2-Over Par On Final Day To Finish 15th At NCAA Championship

Mary Ellen Jacobs

Sophomore Mary Ellen Jacobs shot a two-under par 69, junior Liliana Alvarez was one stroke back with a 70, and the Green Wave posted a two-over par 286 in the final round as the Tulane University women's golf team finished 15th at the 2005 NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championship Friday at the par-71, 6,321-yard Sunriver Resort.

The Green Wave entered the day 20th out of 24 teams, but came on strong in the final day of competition to shoot the third lowest score by any team in the national championship tournament to climb five spots and finish the 2004-05 season on a high note. With a 1202 (305-312-299-286), Tulane was just one stroke behind 14th placed Washington (292-314-296-299=1201) and five strokes back of a 10th place finish.

"Today's round shows why we've been a Top 10 team all year long," Tulane head coach Sue Bower said. "I'm thrilled for the girls. For us to get a Top 15 finish in our first nationals is definitely a dream. They have set the bar for future Tulane teams to live up to.

"This is what Tulane golf is and needs to be. I'm happy for them, and I'm thrilled for the program. Tulane golf is now officially in the national spotlight, and we have a lot live up to."

Tulane tallied 10 holes below par, including four birdies by Jacobs, and a trio of birds and an eagle by Alvarez. While the pair posted spectacular days by anyone's standards, senior Lindsay Hulwick shot her best round of the tournament with a two-over par 73, and sophomore Alison Walshe chipped in with a 74.

Walshe led all Green Wave players, finishing tied for 39th in the overall standings with a 15-over par 299 (74-78-73-74), and Jacobs (76-73-82-69=300) and Alvarez (76-83-71-70=300) were one stroke back to finish tied for 45th. Hulwick was next with a plus-26 310 (79-80-78-73) to finish tied for 98th, while senior Alexis Wooster - who played through an injured neck for most of the weekend - finished 120th with a 320 (81-81-77-81).

"The bottom line is that I've got a group of competitors," Bower said. "I wish I could tell you there was something I said, but this was a week about them. Let Tulane golf be known. They are a group of strong-willed, competitive women.

"Are they resilient? You bet. For them to shoot that kind of number in the final round of the national championship will carry them in good stead for the future."

Duke won the team title with a four-day score of 1,170 (292-303-278-297) and posted a five-stroke win over national runner-up UCLA (288-302-292-293=1175). The Blue Devil's Anna Grzebien claimed the individual championship with a two-over par 73 on Friday to finish the four-round event with a two-over par 286 (73-75-65-73), while Virginia's Leah Wigger was runner-up at 287 (73-72-73-69). Future C-USA member Tulsa also qualified and placed 23rd.

Team Scores: 1. Duke 292-303-278-297=1170 (+34); 2. UCLA 288-302-292-293=1175 (+39); 3. Auburn 290-296-295-295=1176 (+40); 4. Pepperdine 291-295-299-294=1179 (+43); 5. California 295-299-296-290=180 (+44); T6. Tennessee 300-303-299-285=1187 (+51), Ohio State 301-296-300-290=1187 (+51); T8. Arizona State 303-301-297-289=1190 (+54), Oklahoma State 298-306-299-287=1190 (+54); 10. Florida 301-304-297-293=1195 (+59); T11. Arkansas 296-307-293-301=197 (+61), Southern Cal 287-312-301-297=1197 (+61); 13. Virginia 304-308-295-293=1200 (+64); 14. Washington 292-314-296-299=1201 (+65); 15. Tulane 305-312-299-286=1202 (+66); 16. Missouri 307-300-296-302=1205 (+69); 17. Michigan State 304-301-299-302=1206 (+70); 18. UC Irvine 311-304-297-299=1211 (+75); 19. Stanford 300-311-298-303=1212 (+76); 20. Purdue 309-302-304-301=1216 (+80); 21. Furman 307-301-309-300=1217 (+81); 22. Texas A&M 305-306-309-299=1219 (+83); 23. Tulsa 307-313-310-292=1222 (+86); 24. Brigham Young 305-317-316-300=1238 (+102).

Top Individual Scores: 1. Anna Grzebien (Duke) 73-75-65-73=286 (+2); 2. Leah Wigger (Virginia) 73-72-73-69=287 (+3); T3. Amie Cochran (UCLA) 71-79-70-68=288 (+4), Brittany Lang (Duke) 74-75-68-71=288 (+4); 5. Nicole Hage (Auburn) 73-75-70-71=289 (+5).

Tulane Individual Scores: T39. Alison Walshe 74-78-73-74=299 (+15); T45. Mary Ellen Jacobs 76-73-82-69=300 (+16), Liliana Alvarez 76-83-71-70=300 (+16); T98. Lindsay Hulwick 79-80-78-73=310 (+26); 120. Alexis Wooster 81-81-77-81=320 (+36).