Lincoln - Katelyn Wright tied for 11th individually to lead the Nebraska women's golf team to a seventh-place finish at the Huskers' season-opening Chip-N Club Invitational Tuesday at the Country Club of Lincoln.
Wright, a junior from Incline Village, Nev., closed the tournament with a three-round total of 231 (76-76-79) on the par-72, 6,075-yard layout at the Country Club of Lincoln. She was joined in the top 25 by fellow junior Steffi Neisen (New Prague, Minn.), who tied for 21st with a 54-hole score of 237 (80-78-79).
NU redshirt freshman Morgan Smejkal also tied for 21st (80-77-80-237) while playing in the first collegiate tournament of her career. Smejkal, a native of Columbus, Neb., was one of five Huskers to complete the first tournaments of their college careers on Tuesday.
True freshman Cassie Deeg (Hugo, Minn.) finished in a tie for 36th at 243 (81-82-80), while redshirt freshman Jackie O'Doherty from Lincoln closed in the top half of the 84-player field by tying for 42nd at 246 (82-83-81).
Those five Huskers produced a final-round 318 on Tuesday to close with a three-round tournament score of 948. Redshirt freshman Cassidy Stelzmiller, who tied for 55th at 256 and true freshman Hannah Luebke, who tied for 60th at 257, also competed as individuals for NU.
"Our youth and our inexperience showed out on the course the past couple days," Nebraska Coach Robin Krapfl said. "But we also did some good things and we'll try to build on those as we continue our season. This was a starting point for us. We had five golfers play their first college rounds, so we know we have a lot of room to grow and get better."
SMU captured the Chip-N Club team title for the second straight season with a three-round score of 903. The Mustangs scorched the course at the Country Club for a tournament-best final-round 289. SMU freshman Alexandra Rossi led the charge on the final day with a tournament-best, four-under-par 68 to win the individual crown at 219 (70-81-68).
Rossi edged North Dakota State's Amy Anderson by two strokes. It was the second straight runner-up finish for the NDSU senior, who also won Chip-N Club medalist honors in 2009 and 2010. Anderson finished with a 54-hole score of 222 (74-73-74).
Missouri, who started the final round with a three-stroke lead over SMU, took runner-up honors with a three-round score of 918. Michelle Butler, who shot a solid 71 in the final round, led the Tigers by finishing third individually at 222 (74-77-71).
North Dakota State finished third as a team at 932, while Kansas State took fourth (935) and Iowa (939) rounded out the top five.
Nebraska returns to action at The Golfweek Challenge in Vail, Colo., Sept. 24-26.
Chip-N Club Invitational
Sept. 10-11, 2012
Country Club of Lincoln (Lincoln, Neb.)
Par 72, 6,075 Yards
Final Team Results
1. SMU - 304-310-289-903
2. Missouri - 299-312-307-918
3. North Dakota State - 306-318-308-932
4. Kansas State - 316-309-310-935
5. Iowa - 311-313-315-939
6. Xavier - 319-317-307-943
7. Nebraska - 317-313-318-948
T8. Houston Baptist - 323-315-314-952
T8. Missouri State - 314-315-323-952
10. Wichita State - 321-320-332-973
11. Nebraska-Omaha - 338-333-335-1,006
12. Creighton - 332-343-338-1,013
13. South Dakota - 351-349-339-1,039
Final Individual Results
1. Alexandra Rossi, SMU - 70-81-68-219
2. Amy Anderson, North Dakota State - 74-73-74-221
3. Michelle Butler, Missouri - 74-77-71-222
4. Jenny Haglund, SMU - 75-77-72-224
5. Katherine Hepler, Missouri - 74-76-75-225
6. Carly Ragains, Kansas State - 78-72-77-227
7. Abigail Smith, Xavier - 75-78-75-228
8. Lauren English, Iowa - 75-78-76-229
T9. Katie Paxton, Houston Baptist - 77-79-74-230
T9. Hannah Martin, Wichita State - 77-75-78-230
Nebraska Individuals
T11. Katelyn Wright - 76-76-79-231
T21. Steffi Neisen - 80-78-79-237
T21. Morgan Smejkal - 80-77-80-237
T36. Cassie Deeg - 81-82-80-243
T42. Jackie O'Doherty - 82-83-81-246
*T55. Cassidy Stelzmiller - 89-81-86-256
*T60. Hannah Luebke - 88-87-82-257
*played as an individual outside Nebraska's lineup