May 22, 2002
AUBURN, Wash. - The Purdue women's golf team is in 15th place after the first two rounds of the 2002 NCAA Women's Golf Championships in Auburn, Wash.
The Boilermakers fired a second-round 296, eight strokes better than their first-round total of 304. They have a two-day total of 600. Purdue was in 18th place after the first round. Arizona leads the field with a two-day total of 581.
"We played better today and were starting to get on track," said coach Devon Brouse. "The key will be to get stronger and get all five players in the hunt. Tomorrow is what's called moving day and it's a chance to move up in the standings. We need all five players to step up."
Junior Heather Zielinski is currently tied for 14th after carding a second-round 71. She has two-round total of 145. Junior Kari Damron fired a one-under 71 in the second round and is tied for 41st with a two-round total of 149. Damron shot a front-nine 33 with three birdies and improved her score by seven strokes from a day ago.
"I worked on my swing a little bit yesterday and got a little more confidence coming into today," said Damron. "I had just a little bit of confidence, slowing it down and getting a good tempo in my swing."
Senior Caroline Laurens is tied for 41st after a two-day total of 149. Laurens fired a second-round 75. Sophomore Beth Hermes and senior Christy Rittenhouse both are tied for 108th place after two-round scores of 158. Hermes carded back-to-back 79s over the first two rounds. Rittenhouse shot a second-round 80.
"We're optimistic about the next two days," said Brouse. "It's exciting to be in striking distance. A couple of the players had good scores today and hopefully that will continue."
This is the third-straight season that the Boilermakers have advanced to the NCAA Championships. The Boilermakers finished 20th at the 2001 NCAA Championships.
Live scoring is provided by www.golfstat.com. A link is provided on the main page of www.purduesports.com.
The event is being held at the 6,273-yard, par-72 Washington National Golf Club. The third round begins on Thursday at 8 a.m. PST. The event will conclude on Friday.
Place Individual 1st Rd. 2nd Rd. 3rd Rd. 4th Rd. Total T-14 Heather Zielinski 74 71 145 +1T-41 Kari Damron 78 71 149 +5T-41 Caroline Laurens 74 75 149 +5T-108 Beth Hermes 79 79 158 +16T-108 Christy Rittenhouse 78 80 158 +16
Place Team 1st Rd. 2nd Rd. 3rd Rd. Total1st Arizona 285 296 581 +52nd Duke 294 293 587 +113rd Georgia 294 294 588 +12 Oklahoma 299 289 588 +125th Florida 298 291 589 +136th Ohio State 299 292 581 +15 Texas 305 286 591 +158th Arizona State 301 293 594 +18 Stanford 299 295 594 +1810th Pepperdine 301 294 595 +1911th South Carolina 298 299 597 +2112th Auburn 298 300 598 +2213th Tulsa 302 297 599 +23 Washington 302 297 599 +2315th Purdue 304 296 600 +2416th California 298 303 601 +25 Michigan 301 300 601 +25 USC 307 294 601 +2519th Michigan State 305 297 602 +26 Oklahoma State 299 303 602 +2621st Wake Forest 298 305 603 +2722nd Vanderbilt 311 296 607 +3123rd UCLA 314 297 611 +3524th South Florida 313 322 635 +59