Oct. 25, 2004
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THIS WEEK IN LOBO WOMEN’S GOLF
No. 14 New Mexico at The Landfall Tradition
WHEN: Friday, Oct. 29 – Sunday, Oct. 31
COURSE:Country Club of Landfall – Jack Nicklaus Course – Wilmington, N.C. – Par 72 – 6,034 yards
THE FIELD: 12 TEAMS (Rankings – Golfweek): No. 15 Furman, No. 14 New Mexico, No. 6 Ohio State, No. 5 Oklahoma State, Penn State, Purdue, South Florida, No. 12 Tennessee, No. 11 Tulane, No. 21 Tulsa, UNC-Wilmington, Vanderbilt
RESULTS: Recaps and results of each round will be available at www.GoLobos.com.
DEFENDING CHAMPS RETURN TO LANDFALL TRADITION – The 14th-ranked New Mexico women’s golf team travels to the East Coast this weekend (Oct. 29-31) for the third-annual Landfall Tradition in Wilmington, N.C. The Lobos claimed the tournament title last year with a score of 891, and senior Kailin Downs tied for second individually with a 221. The 12-team field, which features seven ranked teams, is being held at the par-72, 6,034-yard Jack Nicklaus Course at the Country Club of Landfall.
The Landfall Tradition will be the fourth tournament of the season for the Lobos. UNM finished second in its first tournament of the year, the Dick McGuire Invitational, which was held at the UNM Championship Course. The Lobos followed that effort with an eighth-place showing at the prestigious NCAA Preview in Sunriver, Ore., site of the 2005 NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championships. In its last tournament, New Mexico placed seventh at the Stanford Intercollegiate Oct. 15-17.
QUICK GLANCE AT THE LOBOS – The Lobos are ranked 14th in this week’s Golfweek/Sagarin ratings released Oct. 24. They are ranked 12th in Golf Stat’s NCAA Head-to-Head rankings released Oct. 19. New Mexico was ranked No. 10 in the Golfweek preseason poll and peaked at No. 9 after placing second at the Dick McGuire Invitational.
Individually, the Lobos have four players ranked in the top 200 according to Golfweek. Senior Kailin Downs heads the pack at No. 23, while junior Christine Fernandez is right behind at No. 33. Senior Christina Spence is ranked 123rd and sophomore Ashley Rollins is at 158th.
Downs, who set the UNM junior scoring-average mark last season with a 73.91 average, is looking to topple Katrina Leckovic’s career scoring average of 75.34 in her last season. After three years and three tournaments, Downs’ average is at 74.13. The preseason All-American was named the Mountain West Golfer of the Month for September, marking the sixth time in her career she has won the award.
Senior Christina Spence |
Fernandez, the Lobos’ top finisher at the 2004 NCAA Championships, is having a stellar junior season, as she is second on team with a 72.67 average. Also returning to the lineup is 2004 Mountain West Freshman of the Year Ashley Rollins, who set the UNM freshman record with a 74.62 average her rookie season. Rollins is fourth on the team this season with a 75.00 average. Senior Christina Spence, a 2003 All-Mountain West honoree, is at a 74.67 average in two tournaments this season. Redshirt freshman Giselle Claux (76.83 avg.) and freshman Alexandra Phelps (80.11 avg.) have each started twice for UNM this fall.
BY THE NUMBERS –
— New Mexico has made 12 appearances at the NCAA Championships (1982, `83, `84, `85, `87, `88, `93, `95, `96, `98, 2001, 2004)
— The Lobos have been ranked in the top 15 since Sept. 29, 2003
— New Mexico has made 12 straight postseason appearances
— UNM has claimed 13 conference championships
— The Lobos have won 37 tournament titles in their history
PLAYER NOTES –
DOWNS NAMED MOUNTAIN WEST GOLFER OF THE MONTH FOR SEPTEMBER – Senior Kailin Downs was named the Mountain West Golfer of the Month for September, marking the sixth time in her career she has won the award. Downs’ key performance to earn the award came at the Dick McGuire Invitational, where she placed third in one of the nation’s top collegiate tournaments. Overall, she has placed in the top five on 13 occasions during her career.
The Bend, Ore., product leads the team with a 72.44 scoring average. She is ranked 23rd in the country by Golfweek and 28th by Golf Stat.
Downs, who was named a Golfweek second-team preseason All-American for the second consecutive year, has established herself as one of the nation’s premier collegiate golfers and solidified her national standing with an excellent summer of golf. She advanced to the round of 32 in match play at the 2004 U.S. Women’s Amateur and won two of her three matches in helping lead Team USA past Japan in the 2004 Fuji Xerox U.S. vs. Japan Collegiate Golf Championships held July 16-18 in Ichihara, Japan.
Downs earned honorable mention All-America honors for the second straight season in 2003-04 after setting a new UNM junior record with a 73.91 scoring average. She also owns the sophomore record (74.1). Downs was the 2004 recipient of the Edith Cummings Munson Award, which is presented by the NGCA to an individual based on academic and athletic achievement. She boasted a 3.82 GPA in General Management to earn NGCA Scholar-Athlete honors for the third straight season and also earned a spot on the CoSIDA Academic All-America third team.
Last season, Downs was named the MWC Women’s Golfer of the Month in September after winning her first career tournament at the 2003 Dick McGuire Invitational and Co-MWC Golfer of the Month in February after placing fourth at the Northrup Grumman Regional Challenge. Downs was the only player in the conference to earn Golfer of the Month honors twice in 2002-03 (September and April). As a freshman, Downs garnered Golfer of the Month honors in October of 2001.
FERNANDEZ LOOKING FOR EVEN MORE – Junior Christine Fernandez was a welcome addition to the 2003-04 Lobo squad after transferring from the University of Tulsa. After starting in all but one tournament last season, Fernandez has stepped up even more in her second year, and is now one of the elite players in the nation. She is ranked 33rd by Golfweek and 38th by Golf Stat with a 72.67 average through three tournaments.
Fernandez tied for 17th at the Dick McGuire Invitational in her first action of the 2004-05 season, but she really stepped into the national spotlight with a great showing at the NCAA Fall Preview. In a tournament that featured 16 ranked teams, Fernandez shot a 1-over 214 to tie for fifth, which was her best 54-hole total as a Lobo. She led the Lobos with a 217 at the Stanford Intercollegiate, marking her third top-20 finish of the season.
Fernandez finished in the top 10 in three tournaments last season, including a career-best tie for second at the Dr. Thompson Invitational in Hawai’i, where she shot a season-low round of 68 in the second round. She also placed in the top 10 at the Las Vegas Founders Women’s Collegiate Showdown and shot a season-low 219 to tie for ninth at the Mountain West Championships. The Las Vegas, Nev., native was the Lobos’ top finisher at the 2004 NCAA Championships, carding a 7-over 295 to tie for 33rd.
ASHLEY’S ROLLIN’ – Sophomore Ashley Rollins, who made a splash onto the collegiate golf scene her freshman season, was named a third-team preseason All-American by Golfweek. Rollins lived up to the hype in her first season as a Lobo, establishing a new freshman record at UNM with a 74.62 scoring average and finishing the season ranked No. 52. For her efforts, she was named the Mountain West Freshman of the Year and also earned All-MWC honors.
One of the top recruits in Coach Booth’s tenure, Rollins made the cut at the 2003 U.S. Women’s Amateur and won all four of her matches at the AJGA Canor Cup prior to attending UNM.
In her first action of the 2004-05 season, Rollins tied for 14th at the Dick McGuire Invitational with a 3-over 222. Rollins’ scoring average through three tournaments this season is 75.00. She is ranked 158th by Golfweek and 195th by Golf Stat.
SPENCE BACK IN LINEUP – Senior Christina Spence, who garnered All-MWC accolades in 2002-03, is back into the starting lineup this season after a year’s absence. Spence tied for 20th with a 5-over 224 in her first start at the Dick McGuire Invitational and tied for 48th with an 11-over 224 at the NCAA Fall Preview. She is ranked 123rd by Golfweek and 132nd by Golf Stat with a 74.67 scoring average.
NEW ADDITION – Redshirt freshman Giselle Claux, a native of Lima, Peru, joined the Lobos for the 2004 spring season after sitting out fall competition. A talented golfer with international experience, Claux competed for the Peruvian National Team in several Junior South American tournaments. She placed fourth at the 2003 Junior South American tournament in Montevideo, Uruguay.
Claux has started in two tournament thus far in 2004-05 for UNM. In her first collegiate tournament, she tied for 78th at the Dick McGuire Invitational. She dramatically improved in her second tournament, tying for 31st at the Stanford Intercollegiate.
Freshman Alexandra Phelps |
NEW ADDITION, Pt. 2 – Freshman Alexandra Phelps, a native of Albuquerque, is ready to contribute to her hometown Lobos. Phelps won the 2004 Class 5A state golf championship and also won the 2004 Albuquerque Women’s City Championship. She earned the Albuquerque Tribune Lighthouse Award/Athlete of the Year for girl’s golf in 2004. She played as an individual in the Dick McGuire Invitational and started in the NCAA Fall Preview and Stanford Intercollegiate.
TOURNAMENT RECAPS –
NEW MEXICO PLACES SEVENTH AT STANFORD INTERCOLLEGIATE (Oct. 15-17) – The 11th-ranked New Mexico women’s golf team finished in seventh place at the Stanford Intercollegiate at the par-70, 5853-yard Stanford Golf Course. The Lobos shot a 299 in the third round, finishing the tournament with a 295-287-299–881. No. 9 Arizona State won the tournament with a 282-282-288–852 (+11).
Christine Fernandez led the Lobos with a 73-72-72–217 (+7), which put her into a tie for 16th place. Kailin Downs tied for 18th place after carding an 8-over 218 (75-69-74). Giselle Claux tied for 31st place with a 12-over 222 (72-75-75), while Ashley Rollins tied for 48th place with a 16-over 226 (75-73-78). Alexandra Phelps finished the tournament with an 81-73-81–235 (+25).
LOBOS POST STRONG SHOWING AT NCAA FALL PREVIEW (Sept. 20-22) – The 10th-ranked New Mexico women’s golf team finished in eighth place at the NCAA Fall Preview which was held at the par-71, 6,312-yard Meadows Course on the Sunriver Resort, site of the 2005 NCAA Championships. The Lobos shot 287-301-296–884 (+32) for the tournament, 10 shots ahead of No. 9 Stanford and 15 shots ahead of No. 4 USC. No. 3 Duke claimed the 21-team tournament – which featured 16 ranked teams and nine of the top 10 – with a 6-over 283-294-281–858.
Christine Fernandez jumped up seven spots on the final day to tie for fifth with a 1-over 68-75-71–214. Kailin Downs tied for 24th place with a 6-over 71-71-77–219. Christina Spence carded a 74-76-74–224 (+11) to tie for 48th while Ashley Rollins fired a 74-79-74–227 (+14) to tie for 62nd. Alexandra Phelps shot a 83-84-83–250 (+37) in her first collegiate tournament as a starter.
UNM’S BID FOR FOURTH STRAIGHT DICK McGUIRE TITLE FALLS SHORT (Sept. 13-15) – New Mexico’s bid for a fourth consecutive Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Invitational title came up short Sept. 15 as second-ranked Georgia claimed the 2004 tournament with a 2-under 874 (287-299-288). The 10th-ranked Lobos made a charge down the stretch and trimmed the Georgia lead to three strokes with five holes remaining, but the Bulldogs held off UNM, who ended up with a 5-over 881 (292-296-293). New Mexico took second place, one stroke ahead of third place and 18th-ranked Pepperdine (293-299-290–882).
Individually, Kelly Froelich of Georgia shot a UNM Championship Course record for 54 holes with a 10-under 209 (68-73-68) to win medalist honors. Froelich tied the UNM Championship Course third-round record Wednesday with a 5-under 68. Oklahoma State’s Karin Sjodin took second with a 6-under 213 while Lobo senior Kailin Downs placed third with a 4-under 215. Downs, who shot a 2-under 71 in the final round, now has 13 top-five finishes for her career.
Three other Lobos finished in the top 20. Sophomore Ashley Rollins fired a 2-under 71 on Wednesday to move up 11 spots and place in a tie for 14th. Rollins finished the tournament with a 3-over 222 (75-76-71). Junior Christine Fernandez tied for 17th with a 4-over 223 (72-74-77) and senior Christina Spence tied for 20th with a 5-over 224 (76-74-74). Redshirt freshman Giselle Claux tied for 78th with a 20-over 239 (73-86-80). Playing as an individual, freshman Alexandra Phelps shot a 17-over 236 (75-80-81) to tie for 65th.