Weekly Release #9

Upcoming Schedule
Sat-Sun., April 15-16 -- at Hawkeye Invitational (Iowa City, Iowa)
Fri-Sun., April 28-30 -- at Big Ten Conference Championship (Madison, Wis.)

Next on the Tee
The University of Michigan women's golf team will continue to stay in Big Ten country as the Wolverines play their final tournament before the Big Ten Championships (April 28-30). The Wolverines will travel to Iowa City, Iowa, to participate in Hawkeye Invitational, hosted by the University of Iowa on Saturday and Sunday (April 15-16) at Finkbine Golf Course.

Tournament Facts
The Hawkeye Invitational will be played at Finkbine Golf Course in Iowa City, Iowa. The tournament will have the course set up for a par of 73 and 6,000 yards. The 54-hole tournament will consist of 36 holes Saturday (April 15) and then a final 18 on Sunday (April 16). All three rounds will be played in a shotgun format with five-count-four scoring. Each day's action will begin at 9 a.m. CDT.

Participating Teams
This year the Hawkeye Invitational will consist of only eight teams: Iowa, Iowa State, Kent, Michigan, Northern Iowa, Northwestern, Notre Dame and Wisconsin.

The Michigan Lineup
Michigan will use five individuals at the Hawkeye Invitational. Freshman Kim Benedict (Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams HS) and sophomore Bess Bowers (Bloomington, Ind./North HS) head up the Wolverine squad. Sophomores Cortney Reno (Grosse Ile, Mich./Grosse Ile HS) and Misia Lemanski (Grosse Ile, Mich./Grosse Ile HS) round out the top four.

Junior Jennifer Baumann (Okemos, Mich./Okemos HS), junior Trish Watkins (Darien, Conn./Darien HS), sophomore Stephanie MacAdams (Lubbock, Texas/Coronado HS), junior Amy Talbot (Plantation, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas HS) and sophomore LeAnna Wicks (Brighton, Mich./Brighton HS) will battle for the last spot during the practice qualifier.

A Look at Last Year in Iowa City
Michigan finished sixth of the nine teams that participated in the 1999 Hawkeye Invitational. The Wolverines finished with a team total of 657 after firing rounds of 333-324. Bess Bowers led the way for the Wolverines, tying for 11th after firing a tournament total of 160. LeAnna Wicks notched rounds of 84 and 79 to finish in a tie for 19th place. Amy Talbot finished just two strokes behind Wicks with rounds of 83 and 82 to finish in a tie for 25th place. Cortney Reno tied for 34th (86-83/169) and Misia Lemanski tied for 43rd (89-83/172).

Wolverines Finish 10th at Indiana Invitational
Despite inclement weather and two player disqualifications in the first round, the Wolverines used consistent play to capture their fourth 10th-place team finish of the year at the Indiana Invitational on Saturday and Sunday, April 8-9, in Bloomington, Ind. The Wolverines fired rounds of 337 and 325 to finish with an invitational total of 662.

After Michigan started the first day off with consistent scores, junior Jennifer Baumann and sophomore Cortney Reno were disqualified for improperly signing their scorecards. Reno rebounded on the second day with an 81, the team's second-lowest score of the day.

The Wolverines responded with solid second-round play as freshman Kim Benedict led the charge, finishing in a tie for seventh after rounds of 83 and 76 for a 159-tournament total. Sophomore Bess Bowers followed in a tie for 33rd after shooting rounds of 81 and 86 for a 167 finish. Sophomore Misia Lemanski finished tied for 45th (84-85/169) and junior Trish Watkins finished tied for 58th (89-83/172).

Benedict Continues to Card the Scores
Freshman Kim Benedict has continued to play well during the stretch run before the Big Ten Championship. She fired a career-best 153 total at the Saluki Invitational (March 26-27) to give her a fourth-place finish, her best as a Wolverine. She followed that with a 159 total and a tie for seventh at the Indiana Invitational (April 8-9) for her second straight top 10 finish.

After leading the Wolverines all fall, she had to shake up her game in the first two spring tournaments as she fell off of her team-leading pace. But the latest tournaments have helped get her back on track as she has regained the team lead for stroke average, at 80.27 per round.

Continuing a Stellar Second Season
Sophomore Cortney Reno continues to lower her scores with each tournament, proving there is no such thing as a sophomore slump. She has dropped an amazing six strokes off her average from a year ago as she is second on the team with 80.66 strokes per round. As a freshman she averaged 86.67. This season, she has played in eight of the nine tournaments with a season-best tie for sixth place at the Hatter Spring Fling (March 18-19).

Filling Up the Card
Sophomore Misia Lemanski has continued to be inked as one of the Wolverine travel squad members as her play continues to improve. She has been one of the Wolverines' most consistent players in the spring, playing in five straight tournaments. She also has dropped nearly a stroke off of her game from a year ago as she is averaging 82.84 strokes per round this season compared to last season's 83.81. She recently tied her best career finish with a sixth-place finish at the Saluki Invitational (March 26-27).

Wolverines Continue with Strong Season
As the year winds down, the 1999-2000 season has seen the Wolverines finish in the top 10 in all but one of their nine events. They are also shooting their best team average in three years as they are shooting 322.90 per round and getting closer to the 1996-97 average of 322.21.

Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423