Sept. 2, 2004
The New Mexico women’s golf team will start the 2004-05 season in familiar territory – ranked in the top 10 among the nation’s elite programs. The Lobos were ranked seventh in the Golf World preseason coaches poll and 10th in the Golfweek preseason rankings released earlier this week. UNM, which finished the 2003-04 season ranked sixth in the final Golfweek rankings, has been ranked in the top 10 since Sept. 29, 2003.
Two Lobos also racked up individual accolades. Senior Kailin Downs (Bend, Ore.) was named a Golfweek second-team preseason All-American and one of the top 50 players in the nation to watch by Golf World. This marks the second consecutive year that Downs has garnered preseason All-America honors. Downs is a two-time honorable mention All-American, a two-time Mountain West Player of the Year and has earned All-MWC honors all three years of her career.
Sophomore Ashley Rollins (Austin, Texas), the 2004 Mountain West Freshman of the Year, was named a third-team preseason All-American by Golf World. Rollins established a new freshman scoring-average record at UNM in her first season with a 74.62 average.
Defending NCAA champion UCLA topped both the Golf World and Golfweek polls. The remaining top 10 teams according to Golfweek are Georgia, Duke, Southern California, Oklahoma State, Auburn, Washington, Wake Forest and Stanford.
The Lobo women’s golf team opens the 2004-05 season Sept. 13-15 with the 26th annual Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Invitational held at the UNM Championship Course.