ROSEMONT, Ill. – After setting a new Purdue freshman record, Luana Valero was named the Big Ten Women’s Golf Freshman of the Week, the conference office announced on Thursday afternoon (March 12). Valero earned the accolade for the second time this season after collecting the honor at the end of the fall.
In the one-day, 36-hole Shootout at Wachesaw at Murrells Inlet, South Carolina (March 9), Valero put together a performance that etched her name in the school record book. The Medellin, Colombia, native carded a 74 (+2) in the opening round before adding a 72 (E) in the afternoon, giving her a 36-hole total of 146 that set a new Purdue freshman record. She also tied for 10th on the individual leaderboard for her first career Top 10. Valero made seven birdies throughout the tournament, ranking fourth in the field.
Valero’s first Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor came in the fall when she carded a career-best 218 (71-73-74) at the Ruth’s Chris Tar Heel Invitational (Oct. 17-19). She tied for 26th on the individual leaderboard in a field that featured six Top 25 teams, helping Purdue finish one shot ahead of No. 1 Wake Forest, who entered the tournament undefeated.
The freshman has made an immediate impact for the Boilermakers this season, cracking the lineup in all eight tournaments. Valero holds a 74.14 stroke average, on pace to be the fifth-best stroke average by a freshman in school history. Along her team-high four eagles, she ranks second in pars (241).
Valero and the Boilermakers return to South Carolina next week, competing in the Briar’s Creek Invitational on Johns Island (March 16-17).
