After a pair of disappointing finishes, the Oregon women’s golf team may have received the spark it needed.
Junior Lacy Erickson, considered one of the Ducks’ top golfers, returns in time for the Rainbow Wahine Fall Golf Classic, starting today on the island of Oahu. Erickson, who has been battling mononucleosis, has been
cleared to play for the first time since the first round of the Shanico Invitational Sept. 16 in Corvallis. This will be her first tournament action of the fall as part of the Ducks’ top five.
Erickson’s supporting cast, which looks to bounce back from a pair of last-place finishes, includes senior Annie Davis, sophomores Johnna Nealy and Jess Carlyon and freshman Therese Wenslow.
“Lacy’s getting her strength back and being able to add her to the lineup gives us a little more experience,” Oregon head coach Shannon Rouillard said. “We need consistent scores from Lacy. Jess is getting the confidence back in her swing and Johnna and Therese have been playing fairly well for us, so I like the group we have going to Hawaii.”
After setting Oregon freshman records in the Ducks’ first two tournaments, Wenslow looks to rebound from her 24-over par 240 performance at the Stanford Pepsi Intercollegiate, Oct. 18 through 20. Nealy, who finished in 39th place, carded the Ducks’ best score with a 15-over 231.
The 17-team field includes four teams ranked in the top 25 in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin poll, including No. 7 New Mexico, the tournament’s defending champion. Other ranked teams include No. 11 California, No. 21 UCLA and No. 25 New Mexico State. The rest of the field includes Brigham Young, California-Irvine, host Hawaii, Kansas, Long Beach State, Northern Arizona, San Diego State, San Francisco, Southern Illinois, Stanford, Texas A&M and Texas Tech, along with Oregon.
“There are a lot of teams in this tournament that we need to beat,” Rouillard said. “Three of our five golfers have seen this course before, so I think with that, positive things are possible at this event.”
The tournament will be held at the 5,900 yard, par 72 Kapolei Golf Course and will last through Wednesday. This is the Ducks’ third appearance in the Hawaii tournament; they finished sixth in 2000 and 17th in 2001.