Michigan State University Athletics
Women's Golf Heads To Liz Murphey Invitational
3/24/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
March 24, 2005
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State women's golf hits the road this weekend (March 25-27) in search of its first title of the spring season at the 2005 Liz Murphey Invitational. The tournament, hosted at the par 72, 6,104 yard University of Georgia Golf Course, features three days of action, consisting of 18 holes of play.
A total of 18 teams are slated to appear at this year's event, including: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, East Carolina, Florida State, Furman, Georgia, Kent State, Kentucky, Louisiana State, Michigan State, Mississippi State, Ohio State, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee and Tulane. Georgia, the host team, is the defending tournament champion. The Bulldogs defeated Ohio State by 11 strokes in last year's battle, while the Spartans finished in a tie for seventh place.
Michigan State is coming off of a 14th-place finish at the Lady Gator Invitational, March 4-6. Junior Dayna Burleigh (Horsham, Pa.) paced the way for the Green and White, as she completed the tournament tied for 40th overall. This weekend, Burleigh will look to lead her squad to a top finish as the golf season begins to come to a close. The Spartans have one more regular-season tournament scheduled (Buckeye Invitational, April 16-17) before heading to the Big Ten Championship, April 22-24. In her third year with the team, Burleigh has become the veteran leader of the squad. Burleigh's best outing came at the Spartans' home event, the Mary Fossum Invitational. She finished tied for 16th overall.
Sophomores Heather Rose (Chillicothe, Ohio) and Mandi McConnell (Grand Blanc, Mich.) will each make the trek to Georgia in search of a victory. Both Rose and McConnnell struggled in their most recent outing, with Rose tying for 64th and McConnell tying for 74th. Both players must be at their best to help the team to success, a fact that was proven most recently when the teammates each finished tied for 30th on way to an eighth-place finish at the Central District Classic.
Also making the trip for the Green and White is true freshman Sara Brown (Tuscon, Ariz.). Brown has been a steady impact player in her first season of collegiate golf, excelling just as head coach Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll predicted before the season began. Brown's best performance of the year came at the Lady Paladin Invitational (Oct. 22-24), when she tied for ninth overall, marking the first top-10 finish of her young career.
Rounding out the roster for the Green and White is sophomore Rachel Meikle (Fort Wayne, Ind.). Meikle will be making her third consecutive appearance and fifth total of the season at the Liz Murphey Invitational. Meikle's best outing of the year came at the first event of the season, the Lady Northern Invitational, where she tied for 26th overall. In the Spartans' most recent outing, the Lady Gator Invitational, Meikle finished tied for 57th.
Michigan State is scheduled to tee off at 10:20 a.m. on Friday, March 25. The Spartans are paired up for the opening day's action with Furman and South Carolina.
