April 1, 2011
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The fourth-ranked Purdue women's golf team continued its impressive play by finishing the first round of the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic in Athens, Ga., with a two-stroke lead over No. 3 Alabama. The defending national champions recorded a 284(-4) on Friday, propelled by senior Numa Gulyanamitta's one-under par 71 - which puts her in third place - and sophomore Laura Gonzalez-Escallon's even-par 72, good for a tie for fourth.
The Boilermakers won their last two tournaments, the Administaff Lady Jaguar Intercollegiate and the Battle at Rancho Bernardo Inn. At the Battle at Rancho Bernardo, Gonzalez-Escallon took home medalist honors and the team victory came against top-ranked Southern California and No. 2 UCLA.
No. 18 Georgia is the host for the Liz Murphey Classic which consists of a field of 23 teams participating in the 54-hole event April 1 to 3, at the University of Georgia Golf Course, a par-72, 6,335-yard venue.
Third-ranked Alabama trails Purdue by two strokes after firing a 286 (-2) in the first round. No. 7 Duke and host Georgia are tied for third after each recording a three-over par 291and Florida State is fifth with a team score of 293 (+5).
Duke's Aleja Cangrejo and Florida State's Hannah Tomson are tied for first, one stroke ahead of Gulyanamitta, after each carded a two-below par 70.
In the opening round, Gonzalez-Escallon recorded a team-high four birdies in her round to go along with a double-bogey on No. 12 and a bogey on No. 18 for her 72. Gulyanamitta had three birdies and two bogeys, resulting in her first-round score of 71.
Senior Thea Hoffmeister opened with a two-over par 74 and is tied for 12th with two rounds to play. Senior Maude-Aimee LeBlanc is tied for 20th after firing a three-over 73, while sophomore Paula Reto opened with a 78 and is tied for 59th place.
The Liz Murphey Classic features a unique best-ball scoring format. Five-person teams from each school are playing together, with the four low scores on each hole counting toward the team's total score. Individual scores are kept and an individual and team winner will be crowned at the conclusion of the final round on Sunday.
Last season, the Boilermakers finished tied for fourth at the Liz Murphey Classic.
Play will resume Saturday morning with a 9:30 a.m. shotgun start and live scoring is available at golfstat.com. Results will be posted at purduesports.com at the conclusion of each round. Full results are posted above.