he Oregon women’s golf team swept away the competition at the Baja Classic at the Bajamar Resort in Baja California, Mexico on Feb. 5-6. The Ducks earned the team title by shooting a total score of 609 over 36 holes. The final round of the 54-hole event was canceled because of fog, which also postponed the second round until Tuesday.
Oregon’s effort was spearheaded by senior Kim McCready, who shot 145 over the two rounds to secure the individual crown.
The Ducks entered the tournament with the fourth-highest ranking in the field, but found themselves tied for the driver’s seat after the first round, shooting a two-over-par 298, matching the score posted by the University of Colorado.
“I was very pleased how we played for the first round of the spring,” Oregon head coach Shannon Rouillard said on Monday, “Especially to shoot 298 on an unknown golf course in a tournament we’ve never been to before. As a whole we played very solid.”
McCready played Oregon’s best round of the day, a two-under 70. Monday’s effort was the 7th time in the 2006-07 season that McCready has shot a round of 73 or lower, a streak that includes tying the school’s record for lowest single round (67).
The Ducks received a three-over 75 from junior Victoria Wenslow and scores of 76 and 77 from freshmen Felicia Eastick and Kate Hildahl, respectively. The remaining member of Oregon’s top five, sophomore Cathryn Bristow shot an 81 round. The rest of the roster, senior Therese Wenslow, sophomore Blair Ressler and freshman Cathleen Ward also made the trip and competed in the event as individuals.
The second round of the tournament began on Monday, only to be suspended and resumed on Tuesday.
“It was a little challenging to be called off the course because of the fog which came and went, but they pulled through,” Rouillard said.
Inconsistency affected nearly everyone on the squad. Only Bristow posted an improvement from her first round score, a 78 in the final 18 holes. McCready again posted Oregon’s best score at 75 to solidify her individual win.
“I’m really ecstatic for Kim … she’s had a lot of challenges and obstacles with some back injuries that slowed her last spring,” Rouillard said. “I am really excited for her to come through today.”
The team as a whole shot 311 over the final 18 holes. Despite the higher score in the second round, Oregon was still able to win by a five-stroke margin.
“The team got off to a good start, and starting a little earlier in the spring proved to be worthwhile,” Rouillard said.
Men’s Golf
The Oregon men’s golf team gets the opportunity to compare its skills with some of the best teams in the nation at the University of Hawaii at Hilo Intercollegiate Feb. 7-9 in Waikoloa, Hawaii. Among the 18 teams scheduled to compete in the event are Stanford, Oklahoma State and USC, teams all ranked in the top 10 in the nation according to the latest Golfweek/Sagarin poll. Pac-10 Conference rivals Oregon State and Washington are also in the tournament field.
The Ducks are coming off a 10-over-par performance at the PING-Arizona Intercollegiate Jan. 29-30, where junior Derek Sipe shot seven under par for the tournament to tie for fifth place as an individual. Sipe will be in the squad for the event along with Hawaii native and senior Matt Ma and junior Joey Benedetti, who posted Oregon’s best score in this event last year. Junior Zeke Reyna and freshman Marcus Sostak will be seeing their first playing time of the spring season.
McCready leads Ducks to victory in California
Daily Emerald
February 6, 2007
0
More to Discover