Husker Post Four Top-Five Finishes Through Fall Season

The Nebraska women’s golf team closed its fall season with a strong third-place finish at the 19-team Edwin Watts/Palmetto Intercollegiate at the Oak Point Golf Course on Nov. 1.

The Huskers closed the 54-hole event with their best round of the tournament, firing a 301 over the final 18 holes to finish at 914, just two strokes behind the team champions from Idaho.

Senior Sara Sackett and sophomore Elli Brown fueled Nebraska’s climb up the leaderboard, posting solid 224 scores to finish tied for fourth place. Brown finished the second round with her second straight 73, heading into the final round in first place. Sackett sizzled through the final 18 holes with an even-par 72 on the 5,930-yard course.

Junior Chrissie McArdle made a late charge up the leaderboard with a final-round 73 to close at 227. McArdle finished in 12th place.

Senior Stephanie Ruiz bounced back from a pair of 82’s to open the tournament, closing with a 78 in the final round to finish in a tie for 65th at 242, while sophomore Allison Stewart managed a 245 to finish in tie for 71st.

Sackett Providing Consistently Low Scores
Senior Sara Sackett is making a strong impact in the Husker lineup as Nebraska’s most consistent player. She has produced NU’s lowest stroke average 75.13 with all 15 of Sackett’s rounds have been 78 or better, including three rounds under par.

Sackett has impressive finishes at all five of NU’s fall tournaments, earning runner-up honors at the 2005 Chip-N Club Invitational on Sept. 26-27, while also tying for fourth place at the Edwin Watts/Palmetto Intercollegiate, Oct. 31-Nov. 1. In addition, she has placed in the top 20 in three out of the five fall tournaments.

The Cambridge, Neb., native has shaved 4.72 strokes off of her 2004-05 average and shot a career-best 71 at the Ptarmigan Ram Invitational, Sept. 12-13.

Brown Capitilizes on 2004-05 Experience
Sophomore Elli Brown is coming off successful freshman season and has the potential to make even greater impact in the lineup.

At the Lady Razorback Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., Oct. 16-18 and the Edwin Watts/Palmetto Intercollegiate on Oct. 31-Nov. 1, Brown shot a career-best 224 and was Nebraska’s top finisher in both tournaments. At the Edwin Watts/Palmetto Intercollegiate she placed in a tie for fourth, giving her the third top-10 finish of the fall season.

"The experience that the freshmen got last season was invaluable," Krapfl said. "Now that they know what it is all about, I look for both of them to really step up and have a successful final three years."

Brown comes into the season with the potential to be one of Nebraska's best all-time players, Krapfl said. Brown played in all of Nebraska's tournaments last season and posted a 77.83 stroke average in the spring, the second-best average by a Husker. This fall she has recorded a 75.20 stroke average over 15 rounds.

"Elli has great length and she is a very good iron player," Krapfl said. "Now that she has that freshman year out of the way, hopefully she's really going to feel comfortable shooting the scores that her golf game dictates that she would be able to shoot. I'm excited about her future."

Brown has recorded 14 rounds out of 15 this fall at or below 78 and has produced two rounds below par. She has shot 71 twice, which is one stroke away from her career-best 70 shot at the 2005 Betsy Rawls Tournament.

NU Storms Into Spring After Impressive Fall
The Nebraska women’s golf team has had an outstanding start to the 2005-06 season by earning a staggering 16 top-20 finishes through all five tournaments this fall. Also, the Huskers have produced an astounding 12 rounds at or below par versus just three through all of the fall of 2004. In addition, 73 of NU’s 94 rounds are at or below 78.

During the fall 2004 season, the Huskers had players finish in the top 20 a total of just 12 times through five fall tournaments. The Huskers have nine top-10 finishes through five tournaments versus eight top-10 placings through all of last fall.

As a team, the Huskers have been just as impressive, already having earned team championship and runner-up honors with a striking 7.71 stroke improvement from fall of 2004.

Huskers Earn Early National Ranking
The Nebraska women’s golf team has earned a No. 51 ranking in the Golfstat polls after being ranked as high as 40th, producing a 300.93 average score per round.

In addition, the Huskers tied the school scoring records for 18 holes with 285 in the second round of the Marilyn Smith/Sunflower Invitational, leading them to tie the 36-hole record of 582 through the first two rounds in Manhattan, Kan., at the Colbert Hills Country Club. Both of the records were originally set at the 1998 Chip-N Club Invitational.

Nebraska is making steady improvements from the 2004-05 season, boosting the overall stroke average from 2004-05 by 9.45 strokes through the 2005-06 season. This can be credited to Nebraska’s experience, talent and work ethic.

Depth also has played a part in NU’s success through the five fall tournaments. As the season started, Coach Robin Krapfl said all nine players could compete for spots in the lineup. Senior Jackie Beste proved it with her first collegiate win at the Chip-N Club Invitational, hosted by the Huskers, where she won the tournament as NU’s No. 6 player.

Ruiz Leading Huskers Through Successful Fall Campaign
Senior Stephanie Ruiz started the 2005-06 season exceeding the high expectations set for her at the beginning of the season. So far, 12 out of 15 rounds for Ruiz through the fall 2005 season have been 78 or better, including four rounds under par.

In addition, Ruiz set a new school record for 18-hole rounds at 67, at the Marilyn Smith/Sunflower Invitational in Manhattan, Kan., at the par-72, 6,046-yard Colbert Hills Country Club. She broke the previous record of 68 set by Amy Roux in the fall of 1998 and tied by Elizabeth Bahensky in fall 2000 and Merynn Ito in the fall of 2004.

Ruiz tied for first place at the end of tournament regulation with a one-under-par 215, but lost to Kansas State’s Helene Roberts in the second playoff hole.

The Edmond, Okla., native has produced three top-five scores so far this fall and owns the third-best stroke average on the team at 75.33. Coming into the season, Head Coach Robin Krapfl predicted Ruiz would have a strong impact after redshirting the 2004-05 season to work on her swing.

"It feels great to play the kind of golf I have been playing so far," Ruiz said. "Especially shooting a school record. I have worked really hard to get where I am with my game right now, and I have really put in a lot of time. It’s really paying off for me now in my senior year."

Huskers Win Chip-N Club Invitational
The Nebraska women’s golf team fired a final-round 307 to cruise to its third consecutive Chip-N Club Invitational title at Wilderness Ridge Country Club, Sept. 27.

The Huskers, who strung together rounds of 295, 300 and 307, finished at 902 to out-perform second place Kansas State by 18 strokes.

All of Nebraska’s top-five players finished in the top 12 in an impressive show of depth from the Husker starters. Even more impressively, NU’s No. 6 player in the tournament, senior Jackie Beste, captured the first tournament title of her career by blistering the 6, 009-yard, par-72 layout at Wilderness Ridge with a career-best 220.

"I’m really proud of what Jackie did today," Krapfl said after the meet. "I know she wanted to be in the top five, and to come out and compete and perform shows what a competitor she is. I am really excited for her first collegiate win. As a team, we work hard and they are a great group to be around. I’m proud of what they’ve accomplished and excited to see what they can accomplish the rest of the season."

NU To Host Big 12 Tournament
Nebraska has been chosen to host the 2006 Big 12 Championship women’s golf tournament scheduled for April 17-19 at the Country Club of Lincoln.

The Huskers will try to improve their seventh-place finish at the 2005 Big 12 Championships in Austin, Texas. Oklahoma State will try to defend the championship on the par-72, 6,201-yard course at the Country Club of Lincoln.

McArdle Builds Off Minnesota Tournament
Junior Chrissie McArdle is building off a strong summer of competition this fall, providing the Huskers with consistently low numbers in NU’s lineup.

Through five tournaments, McArdle owns a 76.40 stroke average over 15 rounds, tying her career-best round of 71 at the Lady Razorback Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., Oct. 16-18. McArdle has also posted an impressive 13 rounds at or below 78.

McArdle claimed the Minnesota Stroke Play Championship by three strokes at the Wayzata Country Club in Wayzata, Minn., on Aug. 17, finishing the 54-hole event with a five-over par 221, after shooting two-over 72 in the final round of competition.

She defeated players from at least five different Division I schools, including Minnesota, Oklahoma, Michigan and Iowa State. McArdle outclassed the rest of the talented field, defeating runner-up Leigh Klasse by three strokes. Lisa Meshke finished four strokes off McArdle’s pace at 225.

Coming into the fall, McArdle owned the best returning stroke average on the team at 77.56 and has four career top-10 finishes along with nine career top-20 finishes. McArdle’s best finish this fall was a tie for 11th place at the Chip-N Club Invitational.

Huskers Recognized for Outstanding Academics
The Nebraska women’s golf team earned recognition from the National Golf Coaches Association for its outstanding team grade-point average during the 2004-05 season.

Nebraska was ranked seventh in the country with its overall GPA of 3.566. South Carolina won the NGCA All-Scholar Team GPA Award with its 3.752 cumulative team GPA.

The NGCA’s new award recognizes women’s collegiate golf programs for their academic achievements. The list is made up of the top 25 collective GPAs in the nation.

Earlier this summer, the NGCA recognized four Huskers individually for their outstanding academic performances. Merynn Ito, Jackie Beste, Chelsea Gehring and Allison Stewart earned honors for their cumulative GPA’s of 3.5 or higher. Nebraska leads the nation with 42 all-time NGCA Scholastic All-Americans.