May 23, 2003
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue finished 12th out of 24 teams in the 2003 NCAA Women's Golf Championships. The Championships, hosted by Purdue at the Pete Dye-designed Kampen Golf Course, concluded on Friday.
The Boilermakers' 12th-place finish was their second best in school history, bettered only by a ninth-place finish in 2000. Purdue has competed in four NCAA Championships.
No. 3 Southern California won its first ever women's golf title after shooting a 1,197 through 72 holes. The Women of Troy, who have made 16 NCAA appearances with five top-five finishes, were 15 strokes ahead of runner-up No. 4 Pepperdine (1,212). Rounding out the top five were No. 5 Texas (1,213); No. 17 Ohio State (1,214); No. 12 UCLA (1,216); and No. 2 Oklahoma State (1,216).
Defending champion and top-ranked Duke finished 10th (1,225).
Medalist Mikaela Parmlid of Southern California won in a playoff against Florida's Andrea Vander Lende. Both finished with 72-hole scores of 297, before Parmlid won on the first-hole playoff. Parmlid led the field of 126 golfers.
The 20th-ranked Boilermakers combined to shoot a 305 on the fourth and final round. Junior Beth Hermes provided the biggest highlight on the last loop, shooting a par 72 on the 6,225-yard course. Hermes improved on each round, cutting at least three strokes each day, and finished in a tie for 73rd (314).
Hermes was pleased with her improvement throughout the tournament, and cherished the opportunity of playing a championship event on her home course.
"I got off to a real rough start through the first two days, but I was able to improve my game considerably yesterday and today," Hermes said. "The whole experience of playing this tournament at home was real fun."
Senior Kari Damron, who entered the final round in a tie for fifth place, shot 8-over on Friday to drop to a tie for 28th (305).
Damron did not finish as strong as she had hoped, but enjoyed the competition in her final collegiate tournament.
"I wasn't really happy with how I played today, but it's over with and I can't go back," Damron said. "I had a real good four years with the team and I wish I could have made the ending just a little bit better. But it was an amazing experience just hosting the tournament."
Senior Heather Suhr carded a 76 on the final round, while classmate Heather Zielinski was one behind at 77. Zielinski finished tied for 55th (310); Suhr tied for 73rd (314).
Freshman Onnarin Sattayabanphot shot an 80 on her final round to finish in a tie for 81st (317).
Purdue head coach Devon Brouse thought the Boilermakers could have done better, but was proud of their presentation as tournament hosts.
"I can't tell you that I'm pleased or excited about how my team performed this week because I'm not," Brouse said. "I feel that we could have played a lot better. It's a bit of a disappointment not to finish higher, but at the same time I feel a lot of pride for the Purdue staff and the event they put on this week. I am so proud of all the people that helped make this event possible."
Complete results can be found at www.purduesports.com or www.golfstat.com.
Purdue Scoring Day One Day Two Day Three Day Four TotalT28 Kari Damron 74 76 75 80 305 (+17)T55 Heather Zielinski 81 76 76 77 310 (+22)T73 Beth Hermes 86 81 75 72 314 (+26)T73 Heather Suhr 80 80 78 76 314 (+26)T81 Onnarin Sattayabanphot 81 77 79 80 317 (+29)12 TEAM 316 (+28) 309 (+21) 304 (+16) 305 (+17) 1,234 (+82)
- P -