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Lincoln, Neb. - Texas A&M's Ashley Knoll fired an opening-round 69 to lead the individual title chase, but Oklahoma State surged to the team lead with 301 after the first day of the Big 12 Women's Golf Championships at the Country Club of Lincoln on Monday.
Knoll, who entered the tournament ranked No. 3 nationally, produced a three-under par 69 on the the par-72, 6,167 layout at the Country Club of Lincoln to finish the first day of the three-day event with a three-stroke lead over Texas Tech's Gloriana Soto, who managed an even-par 72.
Knoll said she was pleased with her opening round result.
"I felt pretty good about the round. I did what I wanted to do," Knoll said. "I thought my chipping and putting were great and it was a good round. I just need to keep playing my game. I thought my course management was good, and I think the key to this course is course management, so I am going to keep that as my strategy."
Jennifer Karr fired the top score for Oklahoma State, sitting in third place after the opening 18 holes with a one-over par 73. Karr led a group of three Cowgirl golfers in the top 10, as Candie Herrera is in a tie for fifth place after shooting an opening-round 75, while Pernilla Lindberg sits in a tie for 10th at 76. Karin Kinnerud added a 77 to finish the first round in a tie for 16th for the Cowgirls.
The consistent scores from the Cowgirls gave OSU a one-stroke lead over Texas A&M, which finished the first round at 302 in second place. The hosts from Nebraska are just six strokes off the pace of Oklahoma State in a tie with Baylor for third at 307. Sophomore Elli Brown led the Huskers with a two-over par 74 in fourth place.
Texas Tech and Iowa State rounded out the top half of the 12-team field in a tie for fifth at 309, while Kansas State led the second tier in seventh place with a 312.
Missouri (313), Texas (314), Colorado (315), Kansas (316) and Oklahoma (317) round out the rest of the field, as all 12 teams are still within striking distance of the leaders after the opening round.
Nebraska Coach Robin Krapfl said the course was challenging but the playing conditions were excellent to open the tournament on Monday.
"Overall, for a championship venue, the course is in good shape," Krapfl said. "The teams really like this course because it is a good test. It's a championship course suited for this type of play."
Big 12 Women's Golf Championships
Country Club of Lincoln (Par 72, 6,167 Yards)
April 17-19, 2006
Team Standings
1 Oklahoma State +13 F +13 301 301 2 Texas A&M University +14 F +14 302 302 T3 Nebraska, U. of +19 F +19 307 307 T3 Baylor +19 F +19 307 307 T5 Texas Tech Univ +21 F +21 309 309 T5 Iowa State Univ. +21 F +21 309 309 7 Kansas State Univ. +24 F +24 312 312 8 Missouri, U. of +25 F +25 313 313 9 Texas +26 F +26 314 314 10 Colorado, U. of +27 F +27 315 315 11 Kansas, U. of +28 F +28 316 316 12 Oklahoma +29 F +29 317 317
Individual Top 20
1 - Ashley Knoll Texas A&M University -3 F -3 69 69 2 - Gloriana Soto Texas Tech Univ E F E 72 72 3 - Jennifer Karr Oklahoma State +1 F +1 73 73 4 - Elli Brown Nebraska, U. of +2 F +2 74 74 T5 - Julia Best (10) Texas +3 F +3 75 75 T5 - Candie Herrera Oklahoma State +3 F +3 75 75 T5 - Allison Martin (10) Baylor +3 F +3 75 75 T5 - Anna Rehnholm (10) Baylor +3 F +3 75 75 T5 - Jessica Shin (10) Iowa State Univ. +3 F +3 75 75 T10 - Megan Dowdy Texas Tech Univ +4 F +4 76 76 T10 - Katy Heffel (10) Kansas State Univ. +4 F +4 76 76 T10 - Ellen Hoeper (10) Missouri, U. of +4 F +4 76 76 T10 - Sarah Kierl Kansas, U. of +4 F +4 76 76 T10 - Pernilla Lindberg Oklahoma State +4 F +4 76 76 T10 - Stephanie Wavro (10) Missouri, U. of +4 F +4 76 76 T16 - Christi Athas (10) Iowa State Univ. +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Kendall Dye (10) Oklahoma +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Brittany Givilancz (10) Texas +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Lauren Johnson Texas A&M University +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Meredith Jones (10) Baylor +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Karin Kinnerud Oklahoma State +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Brenda Norris Texas A&M University +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Karly Pinder (10) Iowa State Univ. +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Helene Robert (10) Kansas State Univ. +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Stephanie Ruiz Nebraska, U. of +5 F +5 77 77 T16 - Allison Stewart Nebraska, U. of +5 F +5 77 77