Buffs In Second At Ptarmigan

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The University of Colorado women's golf team shook off some early butterflies and finished strong, ending the first day of the 2011-12 season in second place through two of three rounds at the Ptarmigan Ram Fall Classic, held at the Ptarmigan Country Club and hosted by Colorado State.

The Buffaloes shot a second round 1-under par 287, matching Illinois for the best second-round score and after a first round 1-over par 289, the Buffs are at even par 576 through two rounds, one shot behind UC Davis (286-289—575). The Illini are third at 3-over par 579 while former Big 12 foe Baylor is fourth (294-294—598), 12 shots behind Illinois, and new Pac-12 competitor California is fifth, one shot behind the other Bears at 13-over par 589.

“We were off to a sluggish and tentative start this morning,” CU head coach Anne Kelly said. “We came back and got some good birdies late in the first round and ended up shooting a really solid round, and then in the second round we had another great finish. I thought we shot a better score in the second round in tougher conditions.

“We're in a position to make a run at it tomorrow. UC Davis is playing really well and had a had some solid performances, especially from Demi Runas, who shot a 66 in the first round.”

The Buffs were led by sophomore Jenny Coleman, who had a pair of subpar performances, shooting a 71-70—141 and is tied for third, four strokes behind Runas. She had two bogeys in her first four holes in the first round and then shot 5-under par the rest of the way, including a stretch of three straight birdies closing out her first round and starting her second. She birdied No. 18 in both rounds to help the Buffs come back in each round.

“Jenny got some birdies when we needed them and had two strong finishes for us today,” Kelly said. “She really played well throughout and is in position to move up more tomorrow.”

Sophomore Alex Stewart saw her first action for the Buffs after transferring from Purdue and after a bit of a rollercoaster ride on her first seven holes, she settled down and shot 3-under par the rest of the day. Finishing the day at even par with a 74-70—144, she is currently in seventh place. She began her CU career with two bogeys on her first two holes, then responded with a birdie only to bogey her fourth hole. After a par and another birdie, she got a double bogey. She then settled down and shot a 1-under par on her last nine holes of the first round and 2-under in her second round.

“Alex seemed a little tentative, maybe a little nervous starting out her day,” Kelly said. “But she relaxed and got in a rhythm and played how she's capable of playing. She executed really well down the stretch today, especially in the second round.”

Senior Emily Talley is tied for 12th after shooting a 73-73—146, or 2-over par. She finished the first round with three bogeys and two birdies and her second round with four bogeys and three birdies.

“Emily played solid,” Kelly said. “She's striking the ball really well and hopefully she can get a few more of her birdie putts to fall tomorrow.”

Sophomore Kristin Coleman opened up the first round shooting 1-under par 71 and then had a 4-over par 76 in the second round to stand tied for 15th. She had a rough stretch in the middle of her second round, shooting 6-over in a span of six holes, but responded with five pars and a birdie in her last six holes of the day.

Senior Jessica Wallace used strong finishes in both of her rounds to move into the top 20 and is tied for 19th with a 74-74—148 scorecard, or 4-over par. She started off with two birdies in her first three holes on the first round and then had a stretch of 7-over par on nine holes before closing out her first round with three birdies on her last five holes. In the second round, on the same two holes she birdied early in the first round, she had a bogey and double bogey, but then settled down and closed out the second round with two straight birdies.

“I know Jess didn't player her best,” Kelly said. “She's such a tough competitor, she never gives up and that showed today with how she finished in both of her rounds. That's just the type of player she is.”

Also playing individually for the Buffaloes were junior Taylor Doyle and senior Meaghan Kari, who are positioned as the top two individuals in the field after the first two rounds. Both improved from the first to second rounds, as Doyle carded a 79-73—152, 8-over par and is tied for 45th and Kari carded a 79-76—155 and is tied for 63rd in the 99-player field.

“Taylor really had a good round this afternoon,” Kelly said. “She wasn't putting well in the first round and made a couple of adjustments and it really paid off for her.”

Runas (66-71—137) is in the lead by two strokes over Baylor's Haley Davis, who carded a 69-70—139. Jenny Coleman and Illinois' Ember Schuldt are tied for third at 3-under par 141 while Schuldt's teammate, Haley Koschmann, is in fifth place at 2-under par 142.

The third round will conclude Tuesday with a shotgun start scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m.

BUFFALOES INDIVIDUALS

Rk.	Team	Score
t-3.	Jenny Coleman	71-70—141
7.	Alex Stewart	74-70—144
t-12.	Emily Talley	73-73—146
t-15.	Kristin Coleman	71-76—147
t-19.	Jess Wallace	74-74—148
t-45.	Taylor Doyle	79-73—152
t-63.	Meaghan Kari	79-76—155

TOP FIVE INDIVIDUALS

Rk.	Team	Score
1.	Demi Runas, UC Davis	66-71—137
2.	Hayley Davis, Baylor	69-70—139
t-3.	Jenny Coleman, Colorado	71-70—141
t-3.	Ember Schuldt, Illinois	70-71—141
5.	Hailey Koschmann, Illinois	70-72—142

TEAM SCORES

Rk.	Team	Score
1.	UC Davis	286-289—575
2.	Colorado	289-287—576
3.	Illinois	292-287—579
4.	Baylor	294-294—588
5.	California	295-294—589
6.	Texas Tech	298-294—592
7.	Colorado State	297-299—596
8.	Louisville	300-298—598
t-9.	San Jose State	313-292—605
t-9.	Fresno State	302-303—605
t-9.	Idaho	295-310—605
t-9.	UTEP	302-303—605
13.	UNLV	298-309—607
14.	Long Beach State	310-303—613
15.	New Mexico State	306-310—616
16.	Nevada	307-311—618
17.	Wyoming	312-312—624
18.	Northern Colorado	319-319—638
19.	Santa Clara	313-328—641

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Players Mentioned

Jenny Coleman

Kristin Coleman

Taylor Doyle

Meaghan Kari

Alex Stewart

Emily Talley

Jessica Wallace