Feb. 26, 2007
TUCSON, Ariz. — The 14th-ranked New Mexico women’s golf team is currently in fourth place after the first and second rounds of the Arizona Wildcat Invitational hosted by the University of Arizona at the par 71-6,238 yard Arizona National Golf Club. New Mexico carded a team total of 595 in two rounds, including shooting a 299 in the opening round and a 296 in the second. Sophomore Giselle Claux is leading the Lobos and is tied for 14th on the leaderboard after shooting a 5-over par through the two rounds.
In the opening round, UNM tied for sixth with Stanford and was led by Jodi Ewart and Giselle Claux. Ewart and Claux both carded 72’s in the round and helped UNM remain in the hunt for the team title. Sophomore Mikaela Backstedt shot a 75 in the opening round, while junior Alexandra Phelps carded an 80 and Py Bengtsson finished with an 84.
Phelps led the way in the second round shooting a 71 and finished with a 151 on the day. Phelps is tied for 28th heading into the finals. Bengtsson recorded a total of 156 strokes after carding a 72 in the second round. Bengtsson is tied for 50th heading into the finals. Backstedt is tied for 33rd in the tournament with rounds of 75-77=152. Ewart carded a 78 and finished with a 150 total and tied for 23rd. Claux shot a 76 in the second round and carded a 148 on the first day.
No. 2 Arizona State leads the event after the first day at 9-over par with No. 4 Duke in second at 20-over par. No. 16 Southern California sits in third place at 22-over par followed by the UNM.
Duke’s Amanda Blumenherst is 3-under par for the tournament and leads all individuals. Jennifer Osburn (Arizona State) shot a 1-under par in two rounds and is second followed by Allison Goodman (California), Azahara Munoz (Arizona State) and Kristen Svicarovich (Vanderbilt) who are tied for third at 1-over par.
The Wildcat invitational continues Tuesday with the final round scheduled to start at 8 a.m. Livestats of the event are available through www.Golfstat.com, with a complete New Mexico recap posted on www.GoLobos.com following the event.