Huskers Set For Mountain View Collegiate

Lincoln, Neb. - The No. 47 Nebraska women’s golf team heads to Tucson, Ariz., for the Mountain View Collegiate hosted by Colorado and Colorado State, March 25-26, at the par-72, 6,138-yard Mountain View Golf Course. The 15-team tournament will feature seven teams from the Big 12 Conference, with shot gun starts at 9 a.m both days. The first and second rounds will be on Saturday, and the final round will be held on Sunday.

At the 2005 Mountain View Collgiate, the Huskers shot a season-best round of 288 in the final round to finish the tournament with a season-best 888.

Coach Robin Krapfl said the Huskers are ready to get back into action, hoping to improve from the "MO" Morial Invitational, March 10-12, where the Huskers placed 11th.

"We are excited to get out and compete again," Krapfl said. "We feel like we need to redeem our performance from last week and Tucson is a great place to do it with seven Big 12 schools in the field. It is a great opportunity to establish ourselves heading into the final tournaments of the spring."

Huskers Finish 11th at "MO" Morial Invitational
The Huskers produced their best round of the tournament by closing with a 320 to climb five spots in the team standings and finish 11th (330-329-320-970) at the Texas A&M "MO" Morial at the Traditions Club in Bryan, Texas, on March 12.

The Huskers surged past Big 12 Conference foes Kansas State (984) and Iowa State (988) in the final team standings, while fellow league opponent and the hosts from Texas A&M won the tournament title with 923.

Ruiz Earns Big 12 Golfer of the Month Honors
Senior Stephanie Ruiz earned Big 12 Golfer of the Month honors for tournament play through March 6.

The Edmond, Okla., native has produced a 75.67 stroke average so far this season, helping her to win the Baja Invitational Tournament title in Ensenada, Mexico, with a 223 (75-73-75), and place second at the Central District Invitational with 219 (73-75-71).

Ruiz helped the Huskers capture the Baja Tournament title as a team, while also boosting them into fourth place at the Central District Invitational.

Ruiz has exceeded the high expectations set for her coming into the 2005-06 season, shooting 78 or better in 18 of 24 rounds, including five rounds under par.

Ruiz set a school record for an 18-hole round with a 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 on the second playoff hole.

In addition, Ruiz has produced five top-five scores thus far in the 2005-06 season and owns the best stroke average on the team. Coming into the season, Head Coach Robin Krapfl predicted Ruiz would have a strong impact after redshirting during 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. "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 Steady in National Rankings
The Nebraska women’s golf team fell to No. 47 this week in the Golfstat national rankings, after jumping 13 spots from No. 51 to No. 38, the Huskers’ highest ranking of the season. The Huskers also dropped to No. 48 in Golfweek, from No. 38.

The Huskers struggled to an 11th-place finish at the "MO" Morial Invitational, after beating five teams ranked ahead of them in the polls at the Central District Invitational in Parrish, Fla., Feb. 20-21. The Huskers have placed in the top five in six of eight tournaments during the 2005-06 campaign, producing a 305.63 stroke average.

In addition, the Huskers won the Baja Invitational title, Feb. 13 and 14, in Ensenada, Mexico, with 928 (309-309-310). Senior Stephanie Ruiz also captured the individual title with 223 (75-73-75).

Huskers Recognized for Academic Accomplishments
Ten members of the Nebraska women’s golf team were recognized for their outstanding academic achievements by making the fall 2005 Big 12 Commissioner’s honor roll.

Seniors Sara Sackett, Jackie Beste and Chelsea Gehring were named along with juniors Chrissie McArdle and Andrea Dunagan, sophomores Elli Brown and Allison Stewart and redshirt freshman Megan Place. Former Huskers Merynn Ito and Beth Anne Bryson were also named to the list.

The Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll recognizes student-athletes who earned a 3.0 GPA or higher during the previous semester. Overall, Nebraska had 235 student-athletes named to the fall honor roll, including 35 who produced perfect 4.0 grade-point averages during the fall semester.

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 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.

Last summer, the NGCA recognized four Huskers individually for their outstanding academic performances. Ito, Beste, Gehring and Stewart earned honors for their cumulative GPAs of 3.5 or higher. Nebraska leads the nation with 42 all-time NGCA Scholastic All-Americans.

Sackett Hoping to Continue Consistently Low Scores
Senior Sara Sackett made a strong impact in the Husker lineup through the fall 2005 campaign as Nebraska’s most consistent player. She has produced NU’s second-lowest stroke average 76.29 with 18 of 21 rounds being 78 or better, including three rounds under par.

The Cambridge, Neb., native had 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 placed in the top 20 in three out of the five fall tournaments.

Brown Capitalizes on 2004-05 Experience
Sophomore Elli Brown is coming off a successful freshman season and fall campaign, having the potential to make even greater impact in the lineup through the spring season.

At the Lady Razorback Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., Oct. 16-18 and the Edwin Watts/Palmetto Intercollegiate 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. At the first tournament of the 2006 spring season, the Baja Invitational, Feb. 13-14, Brown placed third with 231.

Brown played in all of Nebraska's tournaments in 2004-05 and posted a 77.83 stroke average in the spring, the second-best average by a Husker. In the 2005-06 season she has produced a 76.88 stroke average over 24 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 shot 78 or below in 17 of 24 rounds this season and produced two rounds below par. She shot 71 twice, which is one stroke away from her career-best 70 at the 2005 Betsy Rawls Tournament.

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.

Each 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 Championship
Nebraska has been chosen to host the 2006 Big 12 Championship scheduled for April 17-19 at the Country Club of Lincoln.

The Huskers will try to improve on 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.

McArdle Builds Off Minnesota Tournament
Junior Chrissie McArdle is building off a strong summer of competition this season, providing the Huskers with consistently low numbers in NU’s lineup during the 2005-06 season.

Through the five fall tournaments, McArdle produced a 77.25 stroke average over 24 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 19 rounds at or below 78.

Coming into the 2005-06 season, 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. At the Baja Invitational tournament, Feb. 13-14, McArdle was one of three Huskers placing in the top-five, coming in fourth with a 234.

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.