Michigan
NCAA Central Regional (Day 3)
Wolverines Use Six-Over 294 to Finish Sixth at Central Regional
5/11/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
Site:Â East Lansing, Mich.
Course:Â Forest Akers West Course (par 72, 6,053 yards)
Tournament:Â NCAA Central Regional
U-M Finish:Â 6th Place of 21 Teams (313-322-294/929)
Top U-M Individual:Â Bess Bowers, tied-11th (77-81-73/231)
Next Event:Â Tue-Fri., May 21-24 -- at NCAA Championships (Auburn, Wash.)
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- With their backs against the wall and needing to go low, the University of Michigan women's golf team responded as all five Wolverine players came together to fire a six-over-par 294 final-round team total today (Saturday, May 11) to leap four spots and finish sixth at the NCAA Central Regional at Forest Akers West Course. The top-eight finish qualifies the Wolverines for the program's first trip to the NCAA Championships.
LeAnna Wicks
Led by senior LeAnna Wicks' (Brighton, Mich./Brighton HS) even-par 72, senior Bess Bowers' (Bloomington, Ind./North HS) one-over 73, freshman Laura Olin's (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie HS) two-over 74, senior Misia Lemanski's (Grosse Ile, Mich./Grosse Ile HS) three-over 75 and junior Kim Benedict's (Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams HS), the Wolverines moved up from 10th to sixth to finish with a 929 regional total, after tallying team rounds of 313 and 322 on the first two days.
Going off the No. 10 tee, Wicks led off the comeback for the Wolverines as she opened her roller coaster back nine with a par before bogeying 11, only to respond with a birdie on 12. She then recorded three straight bogeys on the next three holes before she closed out with birdies on 16 and 18 to get to plus-one after nine holes of the final round. Then the comfort level kicked in as she evened her round with a birdie on 1 and followed with eight straight pars to lead the Wolverines with her even-par 72.
Bowers started off her day by bogeying the opening hole, but went minus-one through the rest of the first nine holes after birdieing 14. She again opened with a bogey on 1, but struck back with a birdie on 2 to stay at even par. After three straight pars, Bowers surrounded a birdie on 7 with a pair of bogeys on 6 and 8 to sit a plus-one. After hitting the green on her final hole, she nearly sank a 30-foot putt to birdie the final hole but rolled it to less than a foot to close out her one-over 73.
Olin opened with a pair of pars on the back nine before hitting some trouble, bogeying 12 and 13. But after chipping in on 14 for birdie and sticking her wedge shot to two feet on 15 to give her another birdie, she pulled even. After a bogey on 17, she closed out the first nine holes plus-one. Olin birdied 2 to get to even and parred the next four holes to keep her round rolling. She closed out with bogeys on 7 and 9 but still finished with a two-over 74.
Lemanski opened with six straight pars before bogeying 16 for her first snag of the back nine. But she recovered quickly with a birdie on 17 followed with a par on 18 to play even on her first nine holes. She started the front nine with two pars before bogeying 3, 4 and 5 to sit at plus-three. After a birdie on 7, she bogeyed 8 and had a par on 9 to close out her final round with a three-over 75.
Benedict opened with a bogey on her first hole and played even through the next six holes, after a bogey on 14 followed by a birdie on 15. She closed out her first nine with a pair of bogeys on 17 and 18 to stand at plus-three. Benedict continued to hit the fairways consistently as she parred the next six holes on the front before closing out with three straight bogeys to finish at six-over 78.
Individually, Bowers led the Wolverines as she tied in an eight-way tie for 11th after rounds of 77, 81 and 73 for a team-leading 231 total. Lemanski and Olin tied for 27th as they tallied 234 regional totals. Lemanski carded rounds of 75, 80 and 75, while Olin had rounds of 79, 81 and 74. Benedict and Wicks both tied for 39th with 236 totals. Benedict fired rounds of 78, 80 and 78, while Wicks shot 81 and 83 before carding a U-M regional-low 72.
Tulsa (315-309-290/914) vaulted up three spots in the final round to win the Central Regional by four strokes over Ohio State (311-310-297/918) and Texas (316-310-292/918), which tied for the runner-up spot. Purdue (309-314-297/920) finished fourth, Oklahoma State (306-319-296/921) was fifth, Michigan (313-322-294/929) was sixth, Oklahoma (319-306-306/931) was seventh and host Michigan State (310-327-295/932) was eighth to round out the NCAA Championships qualifiers.
Tulsa's Stacy Prammansudh (71-77-71/219) won the individual medalist honor by four strokes just like her team. Kent State's Martina Gillen (71-77-75/223) finished as the runner-up and Purdue's Caroline Laurens (75-76-73/224) placed third. Gillen and Baylor's Melanie Hagewood (70-78-77/225) qualified as the two individuals from non-qualifying teams for the NCAA Championships.
The Wolverines will continue their record-setting season with the program's first trip to the NCAA Championships, which will be held Tuesday through Friday (May 21-24) at Washington National Golf Course in Auburn, Wash.
Final Team Standings
1. Tulsa 315-309-290 = 914
2. Ohio State 311-310-297 = 918
Texas 316-310-292 = 918
4. Purdue 309-314-297 = 920
5. Oklahoma State 306-319-296 = 921
6. MICHIGAN 313-322-294 = 929
7. Oklahoma 319-306-306 = 931
8. Michigan State 310-327-295 = 932
-----------------------------------------
9. Kent State 304-317-312 = 933
10. Baylor 309-318-309 = 936
11. TCU 314-320-304 = 938
12. Wisconsin 324-319-305 = 948
13. Illinois 324-334-303 = 961
14. Northwestern 325-334-304 = 963
15. Kansas State 325-326-313 = 964
16. Indiana 339-318-311 = 968
17. Florida State 327-329-313 = 969
18. UNC-Wilmington 331-324-318 = 973
19. Nebraska 339-333-326 = 998
20. Bradley 337-344-322 = 1003
21. St. Francis (Pa.) 358-355-342 = 1055
Top Individuals
1. Stacy Prammanasudh, Tulsa 71-77-71 = 219 (+3)
2. Martina Gillen, Kent State# 71-77-75 = 223
3. Caroline Laurens, Purdue 75-76-73 = 224
4. Melanie Hagewood, Baylor# 70-78-77 = 225
5. Malinda Johnson, Wisconsin 77-76-73 = 226
6. Mollie Fankhauser, Ohio State 77-77-73 = 227
Lindsay Knowlton, Ohio State 78-75-74 = 227
8. Kristin Dufour, Texas 80-75-73 = 228
Janice Olivencia, Texas 77-79-72 = 228
10. Allison Fouch, Michigan State 80-79-70 = 229
11. Bess Bowers, U-M 77-81-73 = 231
Kari Damron, Purdue 82-76-73 = 231
Suzie Fisher, Tulsa 81-76-74 = 231
Allison Johnson, Oklahoma 79-77-75 = 231
Kelli McKandless, Baylor 79-77-75 = 231
Lisa Meldrum, Oklahoma 81-76-74 = 231
Julie Tvede, Tulsa 82-78-71 = 231
Kristin White, Ohio State 75-82-74 = 231
# Individual qualifiers for NCAA Championships
Other Michigan Individuals
T27. Misia Lemanski 79-80-75 = 234 T27. Laura Olin 79-81-74 = 234 T39. LeAnna Wicks 81-83-72 = 236 T39. Kim Benedict 78-80-78 = 236
QUOTES
Head Coach Kathy Teichert
On the finish at the NCAA Regional ... "This was about pure guts and determination. I am just so, so, so happy right now. I can't even begin to describe this feeling. We had a meeting last night and really sat down and broke things down. We talked about how we knew we could play better, that eight shots was not out of reach. We talked about how we could play this kind of course. We knew we had the ability to go low."
On the final round ... "We really put ourselves in a deep hole after the second round, a round that I thought was the most critical. But we responded to the elements and really concentrated today. I reminds me of Indiana a few weeks back. We were 10 shots back and we won by two. The girls just had such a look of determination on their faces today. Our backs were against the wall and they responded. They faced this challenge head on and really came through. They heard the talk, but walked the walked. I couldn't be more happier and prouder of this team and all that they have accomplished this year."
On the first-ever NCAA Championship appearance ... "You know, I don't even know how to describe this. Like I have been all year long, these girls keep amazing me with every tournament. This is amazing. They have really worked hard and this is pure icing on the cake."
Senior Bess Bowers
On the motivation before the final round ... "As a senior, I didn't want this to be my last round. We met last night and we knew we had to motivate ourselves enough to get through this. We have the games to do it. Today was going to be the day that we were going to go low. We had good weather and that helped a lot. Everything just came together like we knew it could."
On being part of the first U-M team to qualify for the NCAA Championships ... "I get chills when I think about it. When I think about how far we've come since I started here, I just think it is so great. We are all such serious competitors and to do some of the things we have only adds to the success of this program."
Senior LeAnna Wicks
On the final round of the NCAA Regional ... "We just wanted to play well. We knew what we needed to shoot. We knew we had to and could go low as a team because we have done it before. With the weather being so much better it really played to our advantage. All we asked of ourselves was to do the best that we could. If we played well and didn't make it, well, we didn't make it. But we just took it one shot at a time and good results came from it. It was make it or break it. We knew that for the seniors it was potentially the last round of our careers and we wanted to do the best that we could. This is just a great reward for this group."
On being part of the first NCAA Championship team ... "It is so surreal. We were all so tense. I mean, people were watching us and trying to follow us all round long, so you wondered just a little throughout the round. But this is just so exciting and really hasn't set in yet. We are just going to enjoy this moment."
Senior Misia Lemanski
On the importance of getting off to a good start ... "I think that after the first hole, when I pushed it right, then chipped close for a tap-in par, I knew it was going to be a good day. I think all of us felt that way. We had not been able to get out of the gate well the last few days, but today it was just different. The weather had a good deal to do with that. We just had a real positive attitude that we were going to do well."
On qualifying for the NCAA Championships ... "It hasn't really sunk in yet. It's amazing. We had a team meeting yesterday night and we just talked about how we needed to do well. We needed to let the things go that went wrong the last two rounds. I know that when I was standing over my last putt, I stopped as said to myself that this could be my last putt ever as a collegiate golfer. But when I stepped up to it and sank it, I just knew that I wasn't done."
Junior Kim Benedict
On the differences in the final round ... "On the range this morning we were just so relaxed. I think we just got off to a good start and we started hitting good shots without all the crosswind and it just got even better. We started to play our games like we knew we could. We knew all tournament that we could play well here and today we did."
On getting to the NCAA Championships ... "It's just so great. We were just talking about how we have never made it to the NCAAs before today. We are making history. We are writing our own records. When we had to come together we did. I am just so proud, proud of the way we played, proud of this team. I am so excited right now, I can hardly hold it together."
Freshman Laura Olin
On the final round of the NCAA Regional ... "We all went out knowing what we had to do. We knew what we could do and it all came together today. Last night, we said to each other, 'Do you have one good round in you Can you do it Can you go low' We did. I am just so happy to be part of this team."
On being a freshman on this team ... "When I first came in, I wasn't sure I was going to be an impact player. But after today, I found out I am. Well, that we all are. There is no one person more important than another. We are such a great team. I am just so proud of this team. This is just unbelievable. We have had so much potential and we just keep getting better and better."
NOTES
• With the sixth-place NCAA Central Regional finish, Michigan has qualified for its first NCAA Championships appearance.
• Michigan's 294 regional total marks the first time the Maize and Blue has broken the 300-stroke barrier at an NCAA Regional. The previous best mark was 308 tallied in the first and second rounds of the 2001 NCAA East Regional (May 10-12, 2001).
• Michigan's 294 final-round total marks the 12th time this season the Maize and Blue has broken the 300-stroke barrier.
• In its 12 tournaments this season, Michigan has not finished lower than sixth.
Players Mentioned
