Columbus, Ohio - Junior Chrissie McArdle fired her best round of the tournament with a three-over-par 75 to lead the Nebraska women's golf team in the third round of the NCAA Championships at the Scarlet Course in Columbus, Ohio, on Thursday.
McArdle, a native of Eden Prairie, Minn., played solid golf from start to finish on Thursday, producing two birdies, 11 pars and five bogeys. She was one-over through her first nine holes, and two shots over after making the turn.
All five Huskers shot scores between 75 and 78 on Thursday, from top-to-bottom their best round of golf on the par-72, 6,203-yard Scarlet Course. However, NU's third-round team total of 306 was one shot off its 305 in the second round. Through 54 holes, the Huskers moved up two spots into 20th place at 922 (311-305-306).
The Huskers are within striking distance of the best finish by a Big 12 Conference team at the 2006 NCAA Championships after moving ahead of Big 12 champion Texas A&M on Thursday's leaderboard. The Aggies struggled in the third round with the second-highest team total of the day with a 28-over-par 316 to fall two shots behind the Huskers into a tie for 22nd place.
NU also gained two strokes on Big 12 runner-up Oklahoma State in the third round, as the Cowgirls managed a 308 to sit in a tie for 18th with UNLV at 918, just four strokes ahead of the Huskers.
As a team, Nebraska is poised to finish with the best four-round score at the NCAA Championships in school history. The Huskers need to shoot a 316 or better in Friday's final round to eclipse the 1,239 team total produced at the 2000 NCAA Championships.
Nebraska Coach Robin Krapfl said the Huskers' missed several opportunities to climb the leaderboard on Thursday.
"We got off to a good start and we were in position to gain some ground," Krapfl said. "Then we gave some shots away and made some mental mistakes that turned a potentially great round for us into just a good round. We still played solid golf for the most part, what we had some chances to put together a much better round."
Senior Stephanie Ruiz, who entered the third of four days of competition at the NCAA Championships in a tie for 15th place, started strong on the back nine, shooting one-over par through her first nine holes with eight pars and a bogey on the ninth hole. She added five more pars and a pair of bogeys over the next seven holes before running into major trouble on No. 8, taking a triple bogey, before adding a par to conclude her round with a 78. Ruiz enters Friday's final round in a tie for 37th at 226 (72-76-78).
Sophomore Elli Brown added a 77 on Thursday to pull within one stroke of Ruiz on the leaderboard in a tie for 45th at 227 (76-74-77). Brown, a native of Meridian, Idaho, and Ruiz are both within striking distance of finishing with the best four-round total by any Husker golfer in history.
Elizabeth Bahensky fired a 301 over four rounds at the Crosswater Golf Club in Sunriver, Ore., at the 2000 NCAA Championships. Ruiz needs a 75 on Friday to match that score, while Brown needs a 74. The next best total in school history came with All-American Sarah Sasse's 307 at the 2003 NCAA Championships.
While Ruiz and Brown slipped a bit on the leaderboard Thursday, McArdle and senior Sara Sackett continued to move up the individual standings.
McArdle jumped 15 spots into the top 100 for the first time at the tournament, as her 75 moved her into a tie for 95th at 235 (82-78-75).
Sackett, a Cambridge, Neb., native also moved up eight spots into a tie for 89th among the 126 golfers in the tournament, after producing her best round of the tournament with a 76. Sackett owns a three-round total of 234 (81-77-76).
Along with McArdle and Sackett shooting their best rounds of the tournament, sophomore Allison Stewart contributed her top performance of the NCAA Championships with a 78. Stewart is in 125th (87-88-78-253).
No. 1 Duke took over the top spot on the leaderboard Thursday for the first time in the tournament with a one-under-par 287. The Blue Devils (297-292-287-876) own a 13-shot lead over second-place USC. The Women of Troy managed a 10-over-par 298 to climb into second place at 889, while Pepperdine finished the day in third at 894.
The Waves' Eileen Vargas continues to lead the individual standings with her two-under-par 214 through three rounds. Vargas managed a three-over-par 75 on Thursday. Vargas sits three strokes in front Duke's Jennie Lee, USC's Dewi Schreefel and Stanford's Jennifer Tangtiphaiboontana, who are all tied at one-over-par 217.
The NCAA Championships conclude with the final 18 holes on Friday at the Scarlet Course. Tee times will be announced Thursday evening.
25th NCAA Championships Team Leader Board - Through Three Rounds Course:Scarlet Course - The Ohio State University: Championship Tees Par 72 - 6203 yardscurrent
position team scoring rounds total
score to par thru today 1 2 3 1 Duke +12 F -1 297 292 287 876 2 Southern California +25 F +10 291 300 298 889 3 Pepperdine +30 F +10 301 295 298 894 T4 Purdue +32 F +12 301 295 300 896 T4 Arizona State +32 F +22 292 294 310 896 6 California +37 F +7 305 301 295 901 T7 Georgia +38 F +3 306 305 291 902 T7 Washington +38 F +5 305 304 293 902 T7 Florida +38 F +14 293 307 302 902 10 Stanford +39 F +7 307 301 295 903 11 Auburn +40 F +17 301 298 305 904 12 Tennessee +44 F +27 303 290 315 908 T13 Wake Forest +46 F +13 297 312 301 910 T13 Arkansas, U. of +46 F +10 299 313 298 910 T13 UCLA +46 F +15 301 306 303 910 16 Florida State Univ. +47 F +13 305 305 301 911 17 Arizona +48 F +9 296 319 297 912 T18 Oklahoma State +54 F +20 311 299 308 918 T18 UNLV +54 F +16 313 301 304 918 20 Nebraska, U. of +58 F +18 311 305 306 922 21 Kent State +59 F +16 312 307 304 923 T22 Louisiana State +60 F +31 298 307 319 924 T22 Texas A&M University +60 F +28 302 306 316 924 24 Alabama, U. of +70 F +22 307 317 310 934
NCAA Championships Individual Leader Board * player is participating as an individual rather than as a team member. Course:Scarlet Course - The Ohio State University: Championship Tees Par 72 - 6203 yards
position player team scoring rounds total
score current start to par thru today 1 2 3
1 1 Eileen Vargas Pepperdine -2 F +3 68 71 75 214 T2 T10 Sandra Gal (10) Florida +1 F -1 74 72 71 217 T2 T5 Jennie Lee Duke +1 F E 73 72 72 217 T2 T12 Dewi Schreefel Southern California +1 F -2 73 74 70 217 T2 T5 Jennifer Tangtiphaiboontana Stanford +1 F E 74 71 72 217 6 T15 Da Sol Chung UNLV +2 F -2 76 72 70 218 T7 T15 Maria Hernandez Purdue +3 F -1 76 72 71 219 T7 T15 Elizabeth Janangelo Duke +3 F -1 77 71 71 219 T9 T29 Amanda Blumenherst Duke +4 F -2 76 74 70 220 T9 T3 Tiffany Chudy (10) Florida +4 F +4 69 75 76 220 T9 T22 Amie Cochran (10) UCLA +4 F -1 78 71 71 220 T12 T22 Sofie Andersson (10) California +5 F E 75 74 72 221 T12 T29 Taylor Leon (10) Georgia +5 F -1 75 75 71 221 T12 T22 Paige Mackenzie Washington +5 F E 76 73 72 221 T12 T15 Kira Meixner (10) Kent State +5 F +1 74 74 73 221 T12 T5 Tiffany Tavee Arizona State +5 F +4 73 72 76 221 T17 T29 Sung Ea Lee Washington +6 F E 75 75 72 222 T17 T39 Carolina Llano Pepperdine +6 F -1 76 75 71 222 T17 T3 Violeta Retamoza Tennessee +6 F +6 75 69 78 222 T17 T5 Onnarin Sattayabanphot Purdue +6 F +5 74 71 77 222 T17 T5 Abigale Schepperle (10) Auburn +6 F +5 74 71 77 222 T17 T29 Leah Wigger * Virginia +6 F E 76 74 72 222 23 T12 Azahara Munoz Arizona State +7 F +4 73 74 76 223 T24 T39 Christel Boeljon Purdue +8 F +1 75 76 73 224 T24 T10 Irene Cho Southern California +8 F +6 73 73 78 224 T24 T62 Mari Chun Stanford +8 F -1 80 73 71 224 T24 T29 Anna Grzebien Duke +8 F +2 75 75 74 224 T24 T22 Maria Martinez (10) Auburn +8 F +3 73 76 75 224 T24 T29 Jennifer Pandolfi Duke +8 F +2 73 77 74 224 T24 T12 Nicole Smith Tennessee +8 F +5 77 70 77 224 T24 T49 Caroline Westrup (10) Florida State Univ. +8 F E 78 74 72 224 T32 T49 Veronica Felibert Southern California +9 F +1 74 78 73 225 T32 T62 Mallory Hetzel (10) Georgia +9 F E 76 77 72 225 T32 T39 Caroline Larsson (10) Florida State Univ. +9 F +2 72 79 74 225 T32 T49 Amanda McCurdy Arkansas, U. of +9 F +1 75 77 73 225 T32 T39 Sophia Sheridan (10) California +9 F +2 75 76 74 225 T37 T49 Nannette Hill Wake Forest +10 F +2 76 76 74 226 T37 T49 Cassandra Kirkland Arizona +10 F +2 73 79 74 226 T37 T39 Joanna Klatten * Georgia State Univ. +10 F +3 76 75 75 226 T37 T39 Ashley Medders Arkansas, U. of +10 F +3 74 77 75 226 T37 T62 Rachel Newren (10) * Brigham Young Univ. +10 F +1 78 75 73 226 T37 T15 Stephanie Ruiz (10) Nebraska, U. of +10 F +6 72 76 78 226 T37 T49 Adriana Zwanck Arizona +10 F +2 74 78 74 226 T44 T29 Elli Brown (10) Nebraska, U. of +11 F +5 76 74 77 227 T44 T73 Laura Crawford Wake Forest +11 F +1 76 78 73 227 T44 T15 Golda Johansson Tennessee +11 F +7 75 73 79 227 T44 2 Jennifer Osborn Arizona State +11 F +12 70 73 84 227 T44 T49 Seema Sadekar UNLV +11 F +3 78 74 75 227 T44 T62 Sommer Scholl Arizona +11 F +2 71 82 74 227 T50 T22 Tiffany Joh (10) UCLA +12 F +7 71 78 79 228 T50 T39 Alissa Kuczka Arizona State +12 F +5 76 75 77 228 T50 T49 Alina Lee (10) Georgia +12 F +4 77 75 76 228 T50 T49 Stacy Lewis Arkansas, U. of +12 F +4 76 76 76 228 T50 T62 Pernilla Lindberg (10) Oklahoma State +12 F +3 77 76 75 228 T50 T29 Kimberly Meck (10) Louisiana State +12 F +6 75 75 78 228 T50 T29 Margaret Shirley (10) Auburn +12 F +6 77 73 78 228 T50 T73 Mika Takayama (10) California +12 F +2 80 74 74 228 T50 T88 Whitney Wade (10) Georgia +12 F E 78 78 72 228 T59 T62 Whitney Brummett (10) Florida State Univ. +13 F +4 76 77 76 229 T59 T62 Melissa Eaton (10) Louisiana State +13 F +4 75 78 76 229 T59 T39 Mandy Goins Wake Forest +13 F +6 72 79 78 229 T59 T62 Lauren Johnson (10) Texas A&M University +13 F +4 77 76 76 229 T59 T49 Paola Moreno Southern California +13 F +5 76 76 77 229 T64 T49 Jean Chua Wake Forest +14 F +6 73 79 78 230 T64 T22 Karin Kinnerud (10) Oklahoma State +14 F +9 77 72 81 230 T64 T22 Rebecca Kuhn (10) Louisiana State +14 F +9 73 76 81 230 T64 T73 Amber Prange Washington +14 F +4 78 76 76 230 T64 T73 Carina Sorensen (10) Alabama, U. of +14 F +4 74 80 76 230 T64 T85 Lauren Todd Stanford +14 F +3 77 78 75 230 T64 T62 Mallorie Underwood (10) Oklahoma State +14 F +5 79 74 77 230 T71 T29 Julia Best * Texas +15 F +9 74 76 81 231 T71 T49 Marina Choi Pepperdine +15 F +7 78 74 79 231 T71 T15 Catalina Marin Southern California +15 F +11 71 77 83 231 T74 T39 Ashley Knoll (10) Texas A&M University +16 F +9 73 78 81 232 T74 T88 Maggie Simons Wake Forest +16 F +4 76 80 76 232 T74 T73 Jenny Suh (10) Alabama, U. of +16 F +6 80 74 78 232 T77 T73 Leanne Bowditch Pepperdine +17 F +7 79 75 79 233 T77 T73 Myrte Eikenaar Purdue +17 F +7 76 78 79 233 T77 T97 Allison Goodman (10) California +17 F +3 78 80 75 233 T77 T94 Laura Goodwin (10) Alabama, U. of +17 F +4 77 80 76 233 T77 T106 Lindsey Hinshaw Arkansas, U. of +17 F +2 76 83 74 233 T77 T88 Kelly Husted Stanford +17 F +5 77 79 77 233 T77 T73 Ornella Jouven (10) Florida +17 F +7 74 80 79 233 T77 T73 Hannah Jun (10) UCLA +17 F +7 76 78 79 233 T77 T94 Susie Mathews (10) UCLA +17 F +4 77 80 76 233 T77 T88 Jane Park (10) UCLA +17 F +5 77 79 77 233 T77 T110 Kim Shin Washington +17 F +1 76 84 73 233 T77 T88 Becky Wood (10) Kent State +17 F +5 77 79 77 233 T89 T113 Jayvie Agojo Pepperdine +18 F +1 83 78 73 234 T89 T106 Nicole Hage (10) Auburn +18 F +3 77 82 75 234 T89 T39 Brenda Norris (10) Texas A&M University +18 F +11 77 74 83 234 T89 T97 Sara Sackett (10) Nebraska, U. of +18 F +4 81 77 76 234 T89 T85 Kayla Shaul (10) Florida State Univ. +18 F +7 80 75 79 234 T89 T97 Christa Spedding (10) Texas A&M University +18 F +4 79 79 76 234 T95 T85 Candie Herrera (10) Oklahoma State +19 F +8 78 77 80 235 T95 T94 Courtney Mahon Arkansas, U. of +19 F +6 74 83 78 235 T95 T110 Chrissie McArdle (10) Nebraska, U. of +19 F +3 82 78 75 235 T95 T73 Marci Turner Tennessee +19 F +9 76 78 81 235 T99 T97 Jackie Beers (10) Georgia +20 F +6 78 80 78 236 T99 T88 Mallory Blackwelder (10) Florida +20 F +8 76 80 80 236 T99 T97 Courtney McCracken Washington +20 F +6 78 80 78 236 T102 T49 Tara Delaney (10) Kent State +21 F +13 76 76 85 237 T102 T117 Kirby Dreher (10) Kent State +21 F +2 85 78 74 237 T102 T73 Whitney Frykman Purdue +21 F +11 78 76 83 237 T102 T113 Amanda Johnson (10) Oklahoma State +21 F +4 80 81 76 237 T102 T62 Caroline Martens (10) Louisiana State +21 F +12 75 78 84 237 T102 T115 Amanda Wilson Arizona +21 F +3 78 84 75 237 T108 T106 Elena Kurokawa UNLV +22 F +7 80 79 79 238 T108 T97 Jessica Lovell (10) Auburn +22 F +8 80 78 80 238 T108 T97 Young Pak UNLV +22 F +8 79 79 80 238 T111 T62 Kate Meyer (10) Texas A&M University +23 F +14 75 78 86 239 T111 T97 Grace Woo UNLV +23 F +9 82 76 81 239 113 T110 Ki-Shui Liao Stanford +24 F +8 79 81 80 240 T114 T121 Devan Andersen (10) * Texas +25 F +4 82 83 76 241 T114 T121 Whitney Myers (10) Florida +25 F +4 82 83 76 241 T116 T117 Jaclyn Burch (10) Florida State Univ. +26 F +7 79 84 79 242 T116 T97 Holly Cantwell Tennessee +26 F +12 80 78 84 242 T116 T73 Shannon Yocum (10) California +26 F +16 77 77 88 242 T119 T115 Danelle Perata Arizona State +27 F +9 79 83 81 243 T119 125 Lauren Smith (10) * Augusta State +27 F +3 82 86 75 243 121 T117 Audrey Gale (10) Alabama, U. of +29 F +10 76 87 82 245 T122 T123 Karen Delaney (10) Kent State +30 F +8 85 81 80 246 T122 T123 Sarah Sturm (10) Alabama, U. of +30 F +8 83 83 80 246 124 120 Rachel Gavin Arizona +34 F +14 84 80 86 250 125 126 Allison Stewart (10) Nebraska, U. of +37 F +6 87 88 78 253 - T106 Alexis Rather (10) Louisiana State - F W 78 81 W -