Michigan
NCAA Central Regional (Day 2)
U-M Falls to 10th after Windy Second Round at Regional
5/10/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
Site: East Lansing, Mich.
Course: Forest Akers West Course (par 72, 6,053 yards)
Tournament: NCAA Central Regional (Day 2 of 3)
U-M Standing: 10th Place of 21 Teams (313-322/635) after Day 2
Top U-M Individual: Bess Bowers and Kim Benedict, tie-25th (158)
Next Event: Saturday, May 11 -- at NCAA Central Regional (East Lansing, Mich.), 8 a.m.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- For the second straight day, the weather -- including wind gusts as high as 40 miles per hour -- was a factor at the NCAA Women's Golf Central Regional at Forest Akers West Course. Under the difficult scoring conditions the University of Michigan shot a 322 second-round team total today (Friday, May 10) and fell three spots to 10th of the 21 teams. Junior Kim Benedict (Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams HS) and senior Misia Lemanski (Grosse Ile, Mich./Grosse Ile HS) led the Wolverines in the second round as they carded eight-over-par 80s.
Kim Benedict
Starting off the front nine, the windy conditions wreaked havoc on the Wolverines all round long as crosswinds and unpredictbble wind gusts changed club selections and approaches. Benedict opened the second round with a bogey on No. 1 followed by a bogey on 4. A pair of double bogeys on 5 and 6 only added to the front nine troubles, but Benedict struck back with a birdie on 9 to sit at plus-five. On the back, she recorded another four bogeys on 11, 15, 16 and 18 but had a birdie on 17 to help her tie for the Wolverines' low round of the day with an 80.
Lemanski opened her round of 80 with bogeys the first three holes of the day, then double-bogeyed 6 and bogeyed 8 to put her plus-six after nine holes. She got comfortable on the back as she parred seven on the last nine holes to give her the eight-over total.
Senior Bess Bowers (Bloomington, Ind./North HS) and freshman Laura Olin (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie HS) followed as they both fired rounds of 81. Bowers was stalled early after bogeying her first hole of the day followed with a double bogey on 3 and a bogey on 4 to put her plus-four. She went on to par on the next five holes on the front to stay at plus-four. Putting troubles led to four bogeys on the next seven holes, but she responded on 17 with an eagle on the par-five hole. After using driver and then a seven-wood to reach the green in two, Bowers sank a 40-foot putt to record the eagle. However, trouble in the bunker on 18 gave her a triple bogey to finish her round at nine-over.
Like three of her other teammates, Olin bogeyed her first hole of the day, followed with two more bogeys on 3 and 6 added with a double bogey on 7 to put her at plus-seven on the front. On the back, four bogeys on the next six holes put her at plus-nine, but she recovered to par the final three holes for her 81.
Senior LeAnna Wicks (Brighton, Mich./Brighton HS) finished the second round with an 11-over 83. After bogeys on 2 and 3, a pair of double bogeys on 5 and 6, followed by bogeys on 7 and 8 put Wicks at plus-eight after the first nine holes. But she swung through the wind as she parred six of her last nine holes to give her a score of 83.
Individually, Bowers (77-81/158) and Benedict (78-80/158) are tied for 25th, Lemanski is tied for 30th (79-80/159), Olin is tied for 41st (79-81/160) and Wicks is tied for 65th (81-83/164) in the 108-player field.
Kent State (304-317) and Ohio State (311-310) are tied atop the leaderboard as they both finished the second round with 621 team totals. Purdue (309-314/623) is third and Tulsa (315-309/624) is fourth. Kent State's Martina Gillen (71-77/148), Baylor's Melanie Hagewood (70-78/148) and Tulsa's Stacy Prammanasudh (71-77/148) are in a three-way tie for the individual lead.
The Wolverines conclude the NCAA Central Regional with the final round Saturday (May 11), teeing off from the 10th tee beginning at 8 a.m., along with Michigan State and Wisconsin. The top eight teams and top two individuals not on a qualifying team will advance to the NCAA Championships on May 21-24 in Auburn, Wash.
Team Standings (After Day 2)
1. Kent State 304-317 = 621 (+45)
Ohio State 311-310 = 621
3. Purdue 309-314 = 623
4. Tulsa 315-309 = 624
5. Oklahoma State 306-319 = 625
Oklahoma 319-306 = 625
7. Texas 316-310 = 626
8. Baylor 309-318 = 627
9. TCU 314-320 = 634
10. MICHIGAN 313-322 = 635
11. Michigan State 310-327 = 637
12. Wisconsin 324-319 = 643
13. Kansas State 325-326 = 651
14. UNC-Wilmington 331-324 = 655
15. Florida State 327-329 = 656
16. Indiana 339-318 = 657
17. Illinois 324-334 = 658
18. Northwestern 325-334 = 659
19. Nebraska 339-333 = 672
20. Bradley 337-344 = 681
21. St. Francis (Pa.) 357-355 = 713
Top Individuals
1. Martina Gillen, Kent State 71-77 = 148 (+4)
Melanie Hagewood, Baylor 70-78 = 148
Stacy Prammanasudh, Tulsa 71-77 = 148
4. Caroline Laurens, Purdue 75-76 = 151
5. Christy Rittenhouse, Purdue 71-81 = 152
6. Malinda Johnson, Wisconsin 77-76 = 153
Lindsay Knowlton, Ohio State 78-75 = 153
8. Mollie Fankhauser Ohio State 77-77 = 154
9. Cristi Cano, Oklahoma State 78-77 = 155
Veronique Drouin, Kent State 73-82 = 155
Kristin Dufour, Texas 80-75 = 155
Alison Hiller, Southern Ill.* 76-79 = 155
* playing as an individual
Michigan Individual Scores
T25. Bess Bowers 77-81 = 158 T25. Kim Benedict 78-80 = 158 T30. Misia Lemanski 79-80 = 159 T41. Laura Olin 79-81 = 160 T65. LeAnna Wicks 81-83 = 164
QUOTES
Head Coach Kathy Teichert
On the second round of the NCAA Regional ... "We put ourselves in a hole on the front nine and could not get anything back on the back. We played the back great yesterday, but it just wasn't happening today. We just have to get those couple of holes. We have to conquer these conditions and overcome the mistakes. We have the ability to go low. We just need to go out there and do it."
On the adjustments for Saturday's final round ... "We have our work cut out for us. There are a lot of good teams out here. We just need to stay within ourselves and play our games. We are a lot better than we have played. We just have to make up some ground."
Senior Bess Bowers
On the crosswinds affecting the second round of the Central Regional ... "It really affected putting and club selections. I mean, you would grab one club thinking that was the correct club with the crosswind and then you would hit it and then it would fly the green. Then you would grab a club with the wind down and as soon as you hit it the wind would come and take it short or off to the side. You just have to stay patient and back away from shots when the wind picks up. But I will tell you, these windy conditions really wear you down."
On the difficulties of the front nine ... "It is a tough nine. Those nine holes are the most difficult stretch of holes on the course. With all the wind it plays even tougher. I think we had trouble today because we went out on them right away. I think if we had a chance to get adjusted to the wind on the back and then head to the front it would have been a different story."
On what needs to be done in the final round ... "We are not out of this by any stretch of the imagination. We need to finish eighth and we are in a position to get there. We need to play comfortable and confident. Maybe it will help our focus if we play from behind."
Junior Kim Benedict
On the windy conditions ... "It caused problems today for sure. It makes it really hard to play in because they were so hard to judge. I would bet that all the big numbers were on those holes with the heaviest crosswinds. The holes become just so tricky. It becomes more of target golf."
On keys for the final round ... "We need to stay focused the entire round. We have to see where we are at and go low. We need to learn from the last two days and bring that into the final round. We can't afford to make mistakes."
NOTES
• For the third straight round, Michigan will be paired with host Michigan State. The Wolverines played with fellow Big Ten member Ohio State in the first two rounds, but with the final round based upon standing another familiar conference partner, Wisconsin, will join the Wolverines and Spartans in the final round.
Players Mentioned
