Lawrence, Kan. - Madeleine Sheils produced the best tournament finish of her career by tying for third while helping the Nebraska women's golf team to a fourth-place finish at the 12-team Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational on Tuesday.
Sheils, a junior from Boise, Idaho, matched her career-best three-round total on a par-72 course with a 223. Her tie for third surpassed her previous career-best tie for seventh at the 2010 Northern Migration in Florence, Ariz. Sheils, who entered Tuesday's final round with a four-shot lead after firing a two-under-par 142 on Monday, settled for an 81 on Tuesday.
"If you would have told us before the tournament that Maddie was going to finish third, we would have been pretty excited about that," Nebraska Coach Robin Krapfl said. "She obviously didn't play as well today as she did yesterday, so she's disappointed with the outcome, but at the same time, we need to take the whole tournament as a positive and build from there."
Freshman Steffi Neisen also settled for an 81 on Tuesday after entering the final round on the 6,279-yard layout of the Alvamar Country Club in a tie for sixth at 149. Neisen finished in a tie for 15th at 230.
Senior Mary Kate Bird led the Huskers on Tuesday with a season-best 75 to climb nine spots on the leaderboard and finish in a tie for 18th at 232. Junior Kayla Knopik slipped one spot into a tie for 23rd, but also produced her best round of the young season with a 77 on Tuesday. Knopik, who is the only Husker this season to produce five consecutive scores of better than 80, closed the tournament at 233 (78-78-77).
Kansas, which entered Tuesday's final round with a one-stroke lead over the second-place Huskers at 603, produced Tuesday's best round with a 300. The Jayhawks won the tournament with a three-round total of 903, 10 shots ahead of runner-up UALR (913). Kansas State took third with a 916, two shots ahead of the fourth-place Huskers (918).
KU golfers also captured the top two spots in the individual standings, with Gracy Thiry taking medalist honors with three rounds of 73 to finish at 219. Thiry edged Jayhawk teammate Katy Nugent (79-69-72-220) by one stroke, while South Florida's Shena Yang tied Sheils for third at 223.
Nebraska returns to action next week at the Johnie Imes Invitational in Columbia, Mo. The 54-hole event will begin with two rounds on Monday, Oct. 4, followed by a final round on Tuesday, Oct. 5. The tournament, which is hosted by the University of Missouri, could offer a preview of the 2011 Big 12 Championships, which will also be held in Columbia.
Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational
Alvamar Country Club (Lawrence, Kan.)
Par 72, 6,279 Yards
Sept. 27-28, 2010
Final Team Standings
1. Kansas - 313-290-300-903
2. UALR - 306-306-301-913
3. Kansas State - 306-304-306-916
4. Nebraska - 303-301-314-918
5. Oral Roberts - 313-299-317-929
6. Wichita State - 306-316-312-934
7. Illinois State - 316-310-315-941
8. South Florida - 318-312-312-942
9. Arkansas State - 332-311-320-963
10. UMKC - 318-322-332-972
11. Northern Iowa - 334-320-320-974
12. Creighton - 331-343-339-1,013
Final Individual Standings
1. Grace Thiry, Kansas - 73-73-73-219
2. Katy Nugent, Kansas - 79-69-72-220
3. Madeleine Sheils, Nebraska - 72-70-81-223
Shena Yang, South Florida - 77-73-73-223
5. Emelie Westrup, UALR - 76-71-78-225
6. Megan Vaughn, UALR - 75-81-71-227
Meghna Bal, Kansas - 80-72-75-227
Taylor Fisher, UMKC - 72-79-76-227
Adin Stromgren, Wichita State - 75-75-77-227
Whitney Pyle, Kansas State - 77-76-74-227
Nebraska Individuals
T3. Madeleine Sheils - 72-70-81-223
T15. Steffi Neisen - 75-74-81-230
T22. Mary Kate Bird - 78-79-75-232
T23. Kayla Knopik - 78-78-77-233
T43. Remy Molyneux - 83-81-80-244*
T50. Katie Keiser - 81-85-81-247*
62. Katelyn Wright - 88-82-86-256
*competing as individual outside Nebraska's lineup