Huskers Add Four Impressive Young Golfers

Lincoln - Nebraska Coach Robin Krapfl announced the signing of four student-athletes to National Letters of Intent on Tuesday to join the Husker women’s golf program in the fall of 2016.

Ashley Lonergan (Scottsdale, Ariz.), Claire Robertson (Carnoustie, Angus, Scotland), Kate Smith (Detroit Lakes, Minn.) and Pasinee Sritragul (Bangkok, Thailand) make up a diverse and talented foursome of incoming Huskers.

Sritragul becomes the first Husker golfer from Thailand, while Robertson is the first Husker golfer from Scotland. Robertson is the sixth European to sign with Nebraska since 1998. Lonergan comes to Lincoln from Arizona.

Smith, who is only the second four-time state champion in the history of Minnesota, will take aim at an unprecedented fifth straight high school title this spring. She continues Nebraska’s recent success in pulling top golfers out of the state of Minnesota.

“We are very excited about this class as a whole,” Krapfl said. “We are replacing three outstanding seniors who have started a lot of rounds for Nebraska the last four years, so it was important to recruit student-athletes with the ability to step in and compete at a high level as freshmen. We feel we have done just that. They will come to Nebraska with a great deal of experience both on the national and international levels. The most exciting part is their ability to shoot low numbers. Not only that, they all epitomize who we want representing the University of Nebraska. They are great students, great athletes and great teammates who have a passion and enthusiasm to play for the Big Red.”

Kate Smith
Detroit Lakes, Minnesota (Detroit Lakes)
Kate Smith comes to Nebraska as a four-time individual state champion for Class AA Detroit Lakes High School in Minnesota. Smith has swept Class AA state titles since her eighth grade season at Detroit Lakes and will take aim at an unprecedented fifth state championship in the spring of 2016. The only other golfer in Minnesota girls’ history to win four state titles was Katie Detlefson.

Since her seventh grade year, when she won her first all-state award, Smith has slashed 10 strokes per round off her season scoring average. As a junior in 2015, she produced a stellar 70.37 average on her way to her fifth consecutive all-state selection. Smith also set three course records this season, including a 64 at The Vintage Course.

“We are very excited to have Kate join our program. She has the innate ability to get the ball in the hole and does not back away from competition,” Krapfl said. “She possesses excellent short-game skills, knows how to win, and has a great work ethic both on and off the course. We’ve had some excellent Minnesotans represent our program. Kate has the potential to be the best of all of them.”

In addition to her high school success, Smith was the 2012-13 Minnesota PGA Player of the Year and the 2013 Minnesota Girls State Junior Champion. In the summer of 2015, she won the PGA Junior Series title at Arbor Links with a three-day career-best score of 209 (74-68-67), which would match the current Nebraska school record held by 2003 first-team All-American Sarah Sasse and current Husker freshman Haley Thiele.

Smith was also a member of Team Minnesota at the 2015 USGA women’s state championship.
Smith continues Nebraska women’s golf’s success in recruiting the state of Minnesota, following in the footsteps of current Husker senior Cassie Deeg (Hugo) and former Huskers Steffi Neisen (New Prague, 2011-14), Chrissie McArdle (Eden Prairie, 2004-07) and Jackie Beste (Sauk Centre, 2003-06). All four were high level performers for the Huskers on and off the course over the last 10 years.

The five-time all-conference selection on the course also has been a regular on the Detroit Lakes Honor Roll throughout her academic career. She won’t celebrate her 17th birthday until May of 2016.

Smith, who chose Nebraska over several other Big Ten Conference schools, said the atmosphere on campus was a major factor.

“I chose Nebraska because of how they care about their student-athletes, the welcoming atmoshpere on campus and the overall tradition surrounding the University.”

Pasinee Sritragul
Bangkok, Thailand
Pasinee “Annie” Sritragul becomes the first Husker golfer from Thailand, after signing her National Letter of Intent to join the Nebraska program. Sritragul has spent the past two summers playing in the United States, including a successful run late this summer on the American Junior Golf Association tour. She put up her most impressive performance with a tie for third at the Izod AJGA Girls Championship. Her three-round score of 213 included a sizzling opening-round 66 on Aug. 18 at the Club at Irish Creek in Kannapolis, N.C. Sritragul added another tie for third (228) at the JoS A. Bank/David Leadbetter Girls Championships, Aug. 4-6, at the Cattail Creek Country Club in Glenwood, Md. She also tied for 10th (235) at the Junior at The Foundry, Aug. 12-13, in Powhatan, Va., after tying for 12th (238) at the Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy Boston Junior at the Cyprian Keyes Golf Club in Boylston, Mass., July 21-23.

“Annie is a great ball-striker and putter. She hits a lot of fairways and greens giving herself opportunities to make birdies,” Krapfl said. “It is exciting to see where she can take her game after she gets a little stronger and continues to hone her short game, given the fact she has already demonstrated the ability to go low.”

Sritragul produced a tie for fourth with a 212 (72-73-67) at the Lessing’s Classic, Aug. 4-7, 2014, and added PGA Junior Series victories in Ohio and Kentucky.

In June of 2015, Sritragul finished eighth in the Girls 15-20 division at the Singha Junior Golf Championship on the 6,343-yard layout at Northern Rungsit in Ayutthawa, Thailand.
Another young Husker, Sritragul won’t celebrate her 17th birthday until September of 2016.

Claire Robertson
Carnoustie, Angus, Scotland (Carnoustie)
Nebraska’s first women’s golf recruit from Scotland, Claire Robertson is set to join the Huskers for the 2016-17 season. She will be the sixth European golfer to join the Nebraska program since 1998. Robertson was a member of Team Scotland at the Scottish Girls Under 16 Strokeplay Championships in Strathmore in both 2013 and 2014. She is a three-time Carnoustie Caledonia Golf Club Ladies Champion (2013, 2014, 2015) and she won the Alfred Dunhill Schools Championship played at St. Andrews in 2013. She won the North of Scotland Girls Championship at Boat of Garten in 2015, setting the course record with a five-under-par 67.

“The thing that stands out the most in watching Claire compete was her ability to battle the whole round, whether things were going her way or not,” Krapfl said. “Claire brings experience competing internationally against the top players in Europe, while also representing her country. She has a well-rounded game, knows how to play in the wind and has shown the ability to shoot low numbers.”

Robertson was a member of Team Scotland at the Girls European Team Championships at Kaskada Czech Republic, while also playing for the Scottish team at the Girls Home Internationals at Lanark in 2015. She represented Scotland at the 2015 Duke of York Young Champions tournament in Kent, England. She also advanced to the match play stages of the 2015 British Girls’ Open Amateur Championships in West Kilbride, Scotland.

Robertson, who chose Nebraska over Chattanooga, said she expects Nebraska to give her the best opportunity for success on and off the course.

“I feel like Nebraska is going to give me the best possible chance of successfully pursuing both my golf and studies. Everyone at UNL has been extremely friendly, and the setup for student-athletes is amazing. I can’t wait to get started and begin my American college life.”

Ashley Lonergan
Scottsdale, Arizona (National University Virtual)
A high-level junior player out of the state of Arizona, Ashley Lonergan earned a spot on the 2014 Girls Junior Americas Cup and was ranked No. 2 in the Junior Golf Association of Arizona Girls 15-18 Division in 2013 and No. 3 in 2014 . She won the JGAA Sportsmanship Award and qualified for the Callaway Junior World Championships in 2012.

“The number one thing is her enthusiasm and passion for the Big Red already,” Krapfl said. “The other impressive thing is how hard she is working to get her game ready to compete. She has the length to be a dynamic player, and now she is working hard on the nuances of scoring. From a coaching perspective it’s great to have players who aren’t satisfied. They want to do everything they can to be ready to help the team.”

As a junior in 2014, Lonergan tied for 12th individually at the Arizona Division I State Championship. Prior to attending Pinnacle, she was an Arizona Division II all-state selection at Scottsdale Christian Academy in 2012 and 2013. A solid all-around athlete, Lonergan also competed in soccer and volleyball at Scottsdale Christian as a freshman and sophomore.
Lonergan, who chose Nebraska over Loyola-Chicago, Seton Hall, Montana, Montana State and Northern Arizona, said she chose the Huskers because of the feeling of family in the program.

“Nebraska is my dream school. Being part of the Husker family is the best decision I have ever made. As soon as I walk on campus, I am always being welcomed and taken care of. The way the athletes are treated at Nebraska is amazing. Every time I visit the campus something new is being built for our benefit. There is no other color I would want to wear besides red.”