Spartans Finish Strong At Regional Challenge

Feb. 11, 2009

PALOS VERDES, Calif. - The No. 19 Michigan State women's golf team carded its best score of the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge in Wednesday's third and final round, shooting a 301 to move up four spots and place sixth with a total of 937 (316-320-301). The prestigious 16-team tournament, held at the par 71, 5,912-yard Palos Verdes Country Club, featured nine ranked teams, including four in the top 10.

The sixth-place finish is the second-highest for MSU in eight appearances at the Regional Challenge; the Spartans took fifth in 2002. MSU's team score of 937 placed them ahead of three ranked teams: No. 11 Pepperdine, No. 18 California and No. 20 Stanford.

"We're very happy with how we finished the tournament," said MSU head coach Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll. "We were a little disappointed yesterday, and we redeemed ourselves with our final round today. This is a good starting point for us because we're competing against the best teams in the nation. We had some young players who stepped up and were ready to play. I really think we did some great things in this tournament."

Aimee Neff paced MSU and collected her third top-20 finish of the season, carding a 19-over 232 (78-79-75) to tie for 16th. Starting on hole 10, Neff shot a 5-over 40 for her first nine holes, but finished strong, compiling five pars and two birdies to finish at 79.

Laura Kueny tied for 24th place after shooting a 78 on Wednesday. Kueny's final three-round score was a 21-over 234 (77-78-79).

Michelle Bowles and Lindsey Solberg each finished the Regional Challenge on a high note. Both carded 74s in the final round, marking the lowest round for any Spartan in the tournament. Bowles tallied her second-best score of the season with a 235 (81-80-74) to tie for 28th, while Solberg ended with a 241 (80-87-74).

Holly Niederkohr also closed out with her best round of the tournament, shooting an 81 for a total of 246 (83-82-81).

No. 1 Arizona State won the tournament with a team score of 898 (305-294-299). Juliana Murcia of ASU claimed medalist honors with a 1-over 214 (70-71-73).

The Michigan State women's golf team returns to action for the Central District Invitational Feb. 16-17 (Monday-Tuesday) in Parrish, Fla. MSU is hosting the 15-team tournament for the ninth year at the par 72, 6,099-yard River Wilderness Country Club.