Weekly Release #2
9/18/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
Upcoming Schedule
Fri-Sun., Sept. 21-23 -- at Lady Northern (Urbana, Ill.)
Sat-Sun., Oct. 6-7 -- host Wolverine Invitational (U-M Golf Course)
Next on the Tee
After the cancellation of the Spartan Invitational due to the tragedies in New York, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania, the University of Michigan women's golf team will travel to Urbana, Ill., to compete in the Lady Northern, Friday through Sunday (Sept. 21-23) at Stone Creek Golf Club. The course will be set up for a par of 72 and 5,842 yards.
The Lady Northern will feature 14 teams from across the Big Ten Conference and Midwest competing head-to-head. Eight of the 11 Big Ten schools will compete in what will be a preview of the course for the 2002 Big Ten Championship. Michigan State, Ohio State and Purdue will not be in Urbana, but rather in Auburn, Wash., competing in the NCAA Fall Preview at the site of the 2002 NCAA Championships -- Washington National Golf Club.
Lady Northern Teams
There will be 14 teams participating in the Lady Northern. The list of participants includes: Bradley, Illinois, Illinois State, Indiana, Iowa, Kent State, Michigan, Minnesota, Northwestern, Northern Illinois, Ohio, Penn State, Southern Illinois and Wisconsin.
Lady Northern Schedule
The Lady Northern consist of 54 holes, with 18 holes being played each day of the tournament.
| Friday, Sept. 21 | First Round | Tee times starting at 8:30 a.m. CDT |
| Saturday, Sept. 22 | Second Round | Tee times starting at 8:30 a.m. CDT |
| Sunday, Sept. 23 | Final Round | Shotgun start at 9 a.m. CDT |
Lady Northern Scoring Format
Scoring for the Lady Northern will be six players, count the low four scores each round.
Lady Northern Results
Results for the Lady Northern will be available on Illinois' website at: www.fightingillini.com.
The Michigan Lineup
The Wolverines will take six players to Urbana to compete in the Lady Northern. Seniors Misia Lemanski (Grosse Ile, Mich./Grosse Ile HS) and Cortney Reno (Grosse Ile, Mich./Grosse Ile HS) head up the squad. Junior Kim Benedict (Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams HS) and senior LeAnna Wicks (Brighton, Mich./Brighton HS) make up the three and four spots. Freshman Laura Olin (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie HS), who will make her collegiate debut for the Maize and Blue, and senior Bess Bowers (Bloomington, Ind./North HS) round out the top six.
Last Year at the Lady Northern
The Wolverines fired a team total of 300 in the final round of the 2000 Lady Northern (Sept. 29-Oct. 1) but remained in the eighth spot of the 16-team field at the Les Bolstad Golf Club in Minneapolis, Minn. The Wolverines tallied descending team totals of 315-308-300 for a 923 total during the three-day event. Bess Bowers led the Wolverines as she tied for 10th. She carded back-to-back rounds of 77 during the first two days before firing a 74 in the final round to move up two spots with her 228 total. Cortney Reno tied for 19th after firing rounds of 77-78-76 for a 231 total and LeAnna Wicks moved up 12 spots to tie for 24th after rounds of 81-78-73 for a 232 total. Other Wolverine finishes included: Sarah Kruer (La Jolla, Calif./La Jolla Country Day) tied for 41st (86-75-77/238), Kim Benedict tied for 58th (80-81-80/241) and Misia Lemanski tied for 80th (87-83-79/249).
Spartan Invitational Cancelled
The Wolverines were slated to kick off the 2001-02 season at the Mary Fossum/Spartan Invitational (Sept. 15-16), hosted by Michigan State, but that tournament was cancelled due to the tragedies in New York, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania. The tournament will not be rescheduled.
Statement from U-M Head Coach Kathy Teichert
"We are deeply sadden by the events which took place on Tuesday. We were shocked by what we heard and then saw on television. All of our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families. We were disappointed that we couldn't compete in the Spartan Invitational, but the cancelling of the tournament was one of things we could do to honor those who were directly affected by this. It is now time for us to move forward. We will always take time to reflect and remember the events of the past week."
Captains Named for the 2001-02 Season
Senior Bess Bowers and junior Kim Benedict were elected captains for the 2001-02 season. Bowers has competed in 34 career tournaments and holds a 79.82 career scoring average. Benedict has not missed a tournament in her two years -- playing in 24 straight. She holds a career scoring average of 78.25, after averaging 79.24 strokes as a freshman and then breaking the Michigan school record with 77.41 strokes as a sophomore.
Olin Set for First Collegiate Action
Freshman Laura Olin will compete in her first collegiate tournament at the Lady Northern (Sept. 21-23). Olin was a four-year varsity letterwinner at Eden Prairie High School. She was a four-year All-Lake Conference selection (1998-2001) and three-year All-State first team selection (1999, 2000, 2001). She was the 1999 Minnesota Class AA state champion -- the first sophomore to win the title -- and then shared the honor in 2001.
Wolverines Battle for Amateur Title
Kim Benedict's and Misia Lemanski's mid-summer tournament schedules saw them go head-to-head in the final of the Michigan Women's Amateur Championship, July 10-13 at the Medalist in Marshall, Mich. In the final, Benedict had a two-hole lead after nine holes and then birdied the par-4 11th hole for a three-hole lead. Lemanski came back with a birdie on the par-4 14th to cut it to two, but Benedict closed the match 2-and-1 at the par-3 17th by chipping close after her tee shot fell short as they both made par. The title marked the second in Benedict's career, after winning the 1999 title.
Benedict and Lemanski Meet Again
After the battle at the Michigan Amateur Championship, Kim Benedict and Misia Lemanski met again, but this time not against each other but in the same field after they each qualified for the U.S. Amateur Championship, July 30-Aug. 4, at Flint Hills National Golf Course in Andover, Kan. Benedict missed the cut for match play after shooting rounds of 75 and 81, but Lemanski had a strong tournament, making it to match play after firing rounds of 77 and 73. However, Lemanski lost in the first round of match play to Erica Blasberg 2-and-1. Fellow Wolverine Cortney Reno just missed the cut for the Championship as she was the first alternate.
Shagging the Highlights
In addition to shagging golf balls all summer, Bess Bowers also shagged sports highlights for ESPN. Bowers spent the summer working as an intern for ESPN in Bristol, Conn. She was assigned to work at the Greater Hartford Open and the Great Outdoor Games in Lake Placid, N.Y.
Wicks Keeps Light Shining Bright
LeAnna Wicks continued her strong play from the end of the season through the summer. She was named the Midwest Collegiate Amateur Series Player of the Year after winning two of the five tournaments in which she participated. In addition she won a U.S. Women's Public Links qualifier, but missed the cut for match play at the championship at Kemper Lakes in Long Grove, Ill. She was the runner-up at the Michigan Women's GAM Championship at Travis Pointe in Ann Arbor.
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
