Huskers To Host Big 12 Championships

Lincoln, Neb. - The No. 43 Nebraska women’s golf team will play host to the 2006 Big 12 Championship April 17-19 at the Country Club of Lincoln. Monday's start is set for 9 a.m.

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, 6,158-yard course.

"We are excited about the opportunity to host the Big 12 Championships," Coach Robin Krapfl said. "The conference has 12 solid teams, all of which are ranked in the top 100 nationally. It should be an exciting three days of golf."

Ashley Knoll from Texas A&M is the highest ranked player in the tournament, sitting at third in the Golfstat national rankings. Texas A&M is also the highest ranked team coming into the tournament at No. 12.

Sasse Named to Big 12 Conference 10th Anniversary Team
Former Nebraska women’s golfer Sarah Sasse, has been named to the Big 12 Conference 10th Anniversary team.

Sasse, who lettered in 2002, 2004 and 2005, was the first NU women’s golfer to receive first-team All-America honors in 2003. One of 11 golfers to make the list of All-Americans, Sasse was the only Big 12 golfer selected.

In addition, Sasse was the 2003 Big 12 Player of the Year, a 2003 Scholastic All-American, the 2003 April Big 12 Golfer of the Month, a three-time All-Big 12 honoree, a four-time academic All-Big 12 pick and three-time NCAA participant.

The Lincoln, Neb., native also holds the individual school record for the 36- and 54-hole scores with 138 and 209 strokes, respectively.

Huskers Finish Fourth at Susie Maxwell Berning
The No. 44 Nebraska women’s golf team produced a final-round 309 to finish in fourth place at the Susie Maxwell Berning Classic on Monday. NU’s three-round total of 906 gave the Huskers their eighth top-five finish of the season.

Nebraska, which managed rounds of 306-291-309 on the par-72, 6,013-yard Jimmie Austin University of Oklahoma Golf Course, finished one stroke behind third-place Texas, and 39 strokes behind Oklahoma State, which claimed the tournament title with a three-over par, 867 (283-284-300). The Huskers placed ahead of five of the other seven Big 12 Conference schools participating in the 17-team field.

Junior Chrissie McArdle fired a final-round 74 to lead the Huskers on the second day of competition, closing the tournament as NU’s highest individual finisher. McArdle produced a 54-hole total of 224 to finish 13th.

Senior Stephanie Ruiz slipped to a tie for 14th with 225, one stroke behind McArdle, after managing an 82 in the final round, to go with rounds of 72 and 71 on Sunday.

Sophomore Elli Brown joined McArdle in charging up the leaderboard on Monday, climbing from 44th into a tie for 19th with a one-over par 73 on Monday to finish the tournament at 227. Sophomore Allison Stewart placed in a tie for 35th with 231, while senior Sara Sackett finished in a tie for 64th with 238.

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 75.36 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 23 of 30 rounds, including six 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.

Huskers Steady in National Rankings
The Nebraska women’s golf team jumped a spot to No. 43 from 44th this week in the Golfstat national rankings.

The Huskers second-place finish at the Mountain View Collegiate helped give NU a boost, 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 eight of ten tournaments during the 2005-06 campaign, producing a 304.20 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).

McArdle Emerges As A Threat In Huskers’ Lineup
Junior Chrissie McArdle has emerged as a consistent threat through the Huskers’ nine tournaments, producing the second-best stroke average on the team at 76.43 over 30 rounds, including 25 rounds at or below 78.

McArdle shot a career-low round of 70 at the Mountain View Collegiate Tournament, helping the Huskers break the 54-hole record with a career-low 215. The Eden Prairie, Minn., native surpassed her previous career-best round of 71 shot three different times, including the second round of the Mountain View Collegiate. McArdle broke her previous career-low tournament score of 221, which she fired at both the 2003 adidas Fall Classic and the 2004 Edwin Watts/Palmetto.

McArdle owns seven appearances in the top 20 this season and two top-five performances.

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.

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 76.63 stroke average over 30 rounds, third-best on the Huskers’ roster.

Brown has shot 78 or below in 21 of 30 rounds this season and produced three rounds below par. She shot 71 four times, which is one stroke away from her career-best 70 at the 2005 Betsy Rawls Tournament.

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 a 79.81 with 20 of 27 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.

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.