May 10, 2012
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The 33rd-ranked and No. 11-seed Purdue women's golf team shot a 301 on the opening day of the 2012 NCAA Central Regional in Columbus, Ohio, and sits in 3rd place with two rounds remaining.
Top-seed and No. 3-ranked Southern California shot a 298 to lead all teams after the first round. No. 3-seed Georgia is in second place with a 299 and the Boilermakers are third at 301.
Junior Paula Reto carded the best round of the day for the Boilermakers with a one-under par 71 and is tied with Florida State's Maria Salinas for second place, one stroke behind Vanderbilt's Marina Alex who shot a 70. Reto, ranked No. 28 nationally, recorded three birdies and two bogeys in her first nine holes and played par golf for the last nine.
Kishi Sinha shot a two-over par 74 on Thursday and is tied for 13th after the first round. The redshirt junior from Noida, India, was averaging 76.5 strokes per round coming into regional action.
Purdue's top-ranked golfer, No. 20 Laura Gonzalez-Escallon, shot a 78 and is tied for 47th. Freshman Vicky Scherer also shot a 78 to tie for 47th. The Augsburg, Germany, native recorded a team-high four birdies, but had bogey or worse on six other holes to finish six-over par. Freshman Aurora Kan fired an 82 and is tied for 94th.
The 54-hole tournament is being held at the Ohio State University Golf Club Scarlet Course, a par-72, 6,264-yard venue. Twenty-four teams and six individuals are competing at each of the three NCAA Regional sites from May 10 to 12. The top eight teams and two individuals from each site will advance to the 2012 NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championships in Franklin, Tenn., on May 22 to 25.
Purdue is looking to advance to its 13th-consecutive NCAA Championships, all under head coach Devon Brouse. The Boilermakers won the 2010 NCAA title and were runners up last year.
The Boilermakers will tee off beginnin at 12:20 p.m. ET on Friday and will be paired with No. 10 seed Florida State and No. 12 seed Arkansas. Live scoring is available at golfstat.com and daily recaps with results will be posted to purduesports.com.