Huskers Tie for Fifth at Kiawah Island

Kiawah Island, S.C. - Mary Kate Bird notched her first top-10 finish of the season to lead the Nebraska women's golf team to a tie for fifth at the 33-team Kiawah Island Intercollegiate on Tuesday.

Nebraska received consistent scoring from each of its top four players to finish with a season-best 301 in the final round. The Huskers climbed into a tie for fifth by closing the 54-hole tournament with a season-best 910, which surpassed their previous top tournament score of 914 at the Alamo Invitational to close the fall season, Oct. 31-Nov. 2.

"It is a really good way to start the spring," Nebraska Coach Robin Krapfl said. "We kept improving each day and we kept climbing the leaderboard, which is encouraging. I think the best part about today's round was that when we made a mistake, we moved on and didn't let one mistake become two or three mistakes. That shows that we are learning from our mistakes and gaining some maturity."

Miami ran away with the team title with a three-round score of 888, nine strokes ahead of runner-up Campbell (897). Florida International took third at 901, while Western Carolina claimed fourth with a 903. Nebraska tied the College of Charleston and Akron in fifth at 910.

Bird, a senior from Kansas City, Mo., posted a final-round 75 to close the 54-hole tournament with a season-best 223 in a tie for 10th place in a 172-player field. Bird, who missed all but NU's first two tournaments of the fall season because of an illness, fired solid rounds of 75, 73 and 75 in the three-day tournament to open the spring campaign.

"It is great to have Mary Kate back in the lineup," Krapfl said. "She solidifies our lineup from top to bottom and takes a lot of pressure off the other golfers because you know she is almost always going to give you a solid score you can count on. She played some really solid golf throughout the tournament."

Junior Madeleine Sheils added a 76 on Tuesday to move up one spot and finish in a tie for 36th at 229 (78-75-76).

Freshman Steffi Neisen made a major leap up the leaderboard over the final 18 holes. The New Prague, Minn., native used a final-round 75 to climb 15 spots to finish in a tie for 46th at 231 (78-78-75).

Junior Kayla Knopik accomplished Nebraska's biggest jump up the leaderboard in the final round, soaring 25 spots into a tie for 59th with a three-over-par 75 of her own to finish at 234 (76-83-75).

Junior Katie Keiser rounded out NU's top five with a third-round 81 to close in a tie for 93rd (83-76-81-240). Keiser matched Husker freshman Katelyn Wright, who posted a final-round 79 to close the tournament in a tie for 93rd (81-80-79) while playing as an individual outside of Nebraska's lineup.

Fellow freshman Remylee Molyneux did not compete in Tuesday's final round after suffering an injury on Monday.

Campbell's Sarah Bejgrowicz claimed individual medalist honors with a three-round total of 216. Daytona State's Mitsuki Katahira added a 216 of her own to tie for the top spot in the final standings.

Nebraska returns to the course for the UNLV Spring Invitational in Boulder City, Nev., March 7-9.

Nebraska Individuals
T10. Mary Kate Bird - 75-73-75-223
T36. Madeleine Sheils - 78-75-76-229
T46. Steffi Neisen - 78-78-75-231
T59. Kayla Knopik - 76-83-75-234
T93. Katie Keiser - 83-76-81-240
T93. Katelyn Wright - 81-80-79-240*
Withdrew - Remylee Molyneux - 85-92-Injured
*competed as an individual outside the NU lineup

Team Leader Board
Courses 1Cougar Point: Cougar Point - Kiawah Island, S.C.     Par 72 - 6001 yards 2Oak Point Golf Club: Oak Point - Kiawah Island, S.C.     Par 72 - 5907 yards
current position	team	scoring			rounds			total score
		to par	thru	today	1	2	3
1	Miami, U. of 1	+24	F	+7	296	297	295	888
2	Campbell University 1	+33	F	+9	299	301	297	897
3	Florida International 1	+37	F	+12	298	303	300	901
4	Western Carolina U. 1	+39	F	+14	297	304	302	903
T5	Charleston, Coll. of 1	+46	F	+18	305	299	306	910
T5	Nebraska 1	+46	F	+13	307	302	301	910
T5	University of Akron 1	+46	F	+14	305	303	302	910
8	Central Arkansas 1	+50	F	+17	301	308	305	914
9	Elon University 1	+51	F	+17	301	309	305	915
10	James Madison Univ. 1	+52	F	+17	296	315	305	916
T11	Oral Roberts Univ. 1	+57	F	+23	311	299	311	921
T11	Longwood University 1	+57	F	+9	311	313	297	921
13	18 DII Newberry College 1	+58	F	+14	312	308	302	922
14	Middle Tennessee State 1	+60	F	+20	308	308	308	924
T15	Jacksonville St. 1	+63	F	+21	304	314	309	927
T15	Old Dominion 1	+63	F	+21	322	296	309	927
17	William & Mary 1	+71	F	+30	308	309	318	935
18	Arkansas State Univ. 1	+74	F	+27	317	306	315	938
19	Wichita State Univ. 2	+75	F	+26	303	322	314	939
20	Daytona State College 2	+77	F	+29	312	312	317	941
21	Jacksonville Univ. 2	+82	F	+24	324	310	312	946
22	Wofford College 2	+83	F	+29	321	309	317	947
23	Iowa, U of 2	+89	F	+35	312	318	323	953
24	Charleston Southern 2	+90	F	+27	324	315	315	954
25	Presbyterian College 2	+92	F	+28	321	319	316	956
26	Bucknell University 2	+95	F	+27	331	313	315	959
27	Richmond 2	+98	F	+41	315	318	329	962
28	Houston Baptist University 2	+99	F	+26	324	325	314	963
29	Winthrop University 2	+114	F	+28	341	321	316	978
30	Citadel, The 2	+115	F	+34	331	326	322	979
31	Drake 2	+126	F	+41	340	321	329	990
32	USC Upstate 2	+133	F	+42	350	317	330	997
33	Faulkner University 2	+295	F	+99	388	384	387	1159