May 22, 2009

Blue Devils Close NCAA Championship In Sixth Place; Blumenherst Fourth
The Duke women’s golf team continued what it did for the first three days at the NCAA Championship as the Blue Devils made their way up the leaderboard to finish sixth overall with a 72-hole total of 1207, while senior Amanda Blumenherst was tied for fourth, individually at the 6,443-yard, Par 72 Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Md.

Taking home the team title was Arizona State, who fired a team-best 291 for the second straight day to win by eight shots over UCLA. The Sun Devils finished with a four-day total of 1182, while UCLA (1190), Southern California (1191), Oklahoma State (1199), Denver (1206), Duke (1207), North Carolina (1210), Virginia (1212), Pepperdine (1213) and Purdue (1216) rounded out the top 10.

As a team, the Blue Devils posted rounds of 308, 301, 302 and 296 over the four days. Duke collected 11 birdies on Friday, after notching six on day one, eight on day two and 10 in the third round. For the third consecutive day, Duke opened action off the 10th tee box. Duke’s top 10 finish in the NCAA Championship is the 15th in school history, while Brooks has notched 12 top six placements over his 25 years. 

UNC Women's Golf Team Finish Seventh At NCAA Championship
The University of North Carolina women's golf team carded a 304 in the final round for a 1210 total to finish seventh at the NCAA Championship played at Caves Valley Golf Club. This was the Tar Heels' highest NCAA finish in school history. Their previous best was eighth place - in 1989, 1992, 1993 (tie) and 1995.

Freshman Allie White led the Tar Heels in the final round, firing a one-under-par 71. White, from Lancaster, Ohio, tied for 16th place with a 10-over 298 total. Senior Sydney Crane and freshman Catherine O'Donnell both carded five-over 77s on Friday. Crane, from Jamestown, N.C., finished with a 299 total in a tie for 21st while O'Donnell, from Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., posted a 306 total and tied for 52nd. Kate Thomas, a junior from Murwillumbah, Australia, carded a 79 for a 312 total and tied for 75th place while senior Lauren Hunt, from Little River, S.C., shot 84 for a 319 total and tied for 104th.

Arizona State topped the 24-team field to capture the team title. The Sun Devils fired a three-over-par 291 in the final round for a 30-over 1182 total. UCLA edged out Southern California by one stroke for second place. The Bruins shot 297 on Friday for an 1190 total while the Trojans shot 297 for an 1191 total. Oklahoma State finished in fourth place at 1199 while Denver placed fifth at 1206 and Duke finished sixth with a 1207 total, three strokes ahead of the Tar Heels. Virginia finished eighth at 1212 and Pepperdine finished ninth at 1213. 

Virginia Finishes Best-Ever 8th at NCAA Championships
The Virginia women’s golf team made history at the 2009 NCAA Championships held at Caves Valley Golf Club. The Cavaliers finished the 72-hole tournament eighth, the first top-10 showing in the program’s six-year existence. UVa was 12th last season and finished 13th in 2005 in its previous NCAA appearances.

The Cavaliers completed play with a final round of 304 for a four-day total of 60-over 1212. Top-ranked Arizona State distanced itself from Pac-10 rivals USC and UCLA during the final round to claim its seventh NCAA title. The Sun Devils shot 3-over 291 for the second straight day to place first at 1182. UCLA was the runner-up at 1190 and USC took third place at 1191. Oklahoma State finished fourth at 1199, Denver was fifth at 1206 and Duke rallied during the final round to take sixth place at 1207. North Carolina was seventh, two shots ahead of the Cavaliers.

Virginia sophomore Calle Nielson turned in another stellar performance Friday to tie for sixth-place overall. She shot even par 72 for a 72-hole total of 294. Nielson started the tournament with scores of 75 and 76 before finding her groove in the third-round when she carded a 1-under 71. She played the final two days at 1-under par on a course that produced an average score of 77.38 during the tournament. 

Wake Forest Shoots 304 In Final Round Of NCAA Women's Golf Championships
Senior Nannette Hill finished off her week, as well as her collegiate career, with a solid round of even-par 72 to lead Wake Forest to a round of 304 on the final day of the 2009 NCAA Women's Golf Championships at Caves Valley Golf Club.

Hill came into the round at 6-over par and was in a tie for eighth. She was the only player in the top-14 that played in the morning wave.

The Pelham, N.Y., native made a total of three birdies and three bogeys in her final round. She started with a bogey at the first but got it right back with a birdie at the second. A three-putt bogey at the par-3 fourth dropped her back to 1-over and that's where she stayed until a nice birdie at the ninth gave her an even-par front nine.