Women's Golf Finishes 7th At Spring Break Classic

KAPALUA, Hawai'i – The University of Colorado women's golf team slipped a notch in the standings and finished seventh in the Anuenue Spring Break Classic here Wednesday.

Though just five strokes out of the top five, where the No. 49 ranked Buffaloes stood after Monday's first round, CU shot a 17-over par 305 team score in the final round, finishing the tournament on the island of Maui with a 45-over par total of 909.

No. 15 Pepperdine recorded tournament-low rounds each day to claim the team title at 6-over par 870. No. 10 Washington and No. 37 UC Davis, held onto their spots at second and third, shooting 879 and 890, respectively. Switching positions each day, San Jose State ended the tournament in fourth at 35-over par 899. Mississippi jumped two spots to round out the top five at 40-over par 904.

“Not a great day for us,” CU head coach Anne Kelly said. “We got off to a poor start, but a couple people really fought back … Not a great finish, we're just going to have to go home and work hard and get ready for our next two events.

“I think especially the younger players learned a lot about playing in the wind. You never know what conditions will be, especially for Pac-12s. That will be good experience. The same as the whole year, we've got to continue to work on our short game – get better at shooting and pitching and not make as many 3-putts. We've got to become better putters.”

Senior Jenny Coleman bounced back from a rough second round, matching her first round even par performance on Wednesday at the 6,022-yard, par-72 The Bay Course at Kapalua. Coleman's 8-over par 224 (72-80-72) performance tied her for 14th. For the second consecutive tournament, Coleman finished in the top 15.

Coleman hit an early speed bump on the 355-yard No. 7, double bogeying on the hole that she had bogeyed on in the second round. She quickly came back, recording three birdies, an eagle and four pars on her next eight holes. Coleman was just one of 10 golfers to make an eagle at the tournament, and the 2-under was Coleman's first of the spring and fifth of her career (a new CU record, breaking a tie with Emily Talley). She finished her front nine at 3-under par, but three bogeys at the end of her round got her to the even finish.

“Jenny really fought back and got herself 2-under, and then unfortunately, had a couple bogeys to finish,” Kelly said. “She really fought back from a poor start.”

Freshman Natalie Vivaldi had the best tournament of her young career, tying for 21st at 11-over par 227. Vivaldi posted back-to-back rounds at 2-over par 74, but shot a 79 on the final day. As she did on Tuesday, Vivaldi made a birdie on the 451-yard No. 15. She shot nine pars in the final round, but eight bogeys slowed her pace.

After making the team's biggest jump between the first and second rounds, senior Kristin Coleman finished tied for 34th. Coleman ended the tournament with a 78-73-79—230 (14-over par) scorecard. Coleman faced her biggest challenge in the third round, making seven bogeys, including one on the 366-yard par-4 No. 11 that she had shot par or better on in the previous two rounds.

Sophomore Jamie Oleksiew was just a stroke behind, tying for 37th with a 15-over par 231 (77-76-78). Oleksiew had a rough start, making three bogeys on her first five holes. Her challenges continued, with double bogeys on the par-4 Nos. 13 and 16. The 324-yard No. 16 was a bother the whole tournament, with Oleksiew going over par on it in all three rounds. Oleksiew ended her round much stronger than she started, going par or better on her final eight holes, including a birdie on No. 1.

With an illness setting her back the majority of the tournament, sophomore Alexis Keating had her best round on the final day. Keating tied for 75th at 25-over par 241 (82-83-76). Not making a birdie either of the first two rounds, Keating made two in the third, including one on the par-3 No. 17 she had bogeyed on in her previous outings. Keating also struggled at the start, going over par on four of her first five holes, including a double bogey on the 160-yard par-3 No. 12, but went on to shoot 10 pars and both of her bogeys to finish the round.

“Alexis got going her last nine holes,” Kelly said. “She played a lot better.”

Sophomore Allie Zech finished third amongst individual competitors, tying for 62nd overall with a 21-over par 231 finish. Zech shot par or better on 13 holes.

Golfstat's No. 27 ranked golfer, Pepperdine's Grace Na, successfully defended her individual title with a tournament record 11-under par 205. Na far outpaced the rest of the field, with Betty Davis of UC Davis eight strokes behind at 213. Two Washington Huskies finished in the top five, with Jennifer Yang in third at 1-under par 215 and Ying Luo in fourth at 1-over par 217. Close behind, Fresno State's Madchen Ly broke into the top five with a final score of 2-over par 218.

CU is nearing the end of the regular season and will co-host the Silverado Showdown in Napa, Calif. from April 14-15, the final tune-up ahead of the Pac-12 Championships next month in Corvallis, Ore.

BUFFALO INDIVIDUALS
t-14	Jenny Coleman	72-80-72—224
t-21.	Natalie Vivaldi	74-74-79—227
t-34.	Kristin Coleman	78-73-79—230
t-37.	Jamie Oleksiew	77-76-78—231
t-75.	Alexis Keating	82-83-76—241
TOP 5 INDIVIDUALS
1.	Grace Na, Pepperdine	70-66-69—205
2.	Betty Chen, UC Davis	70-72-71—213
3.	Jennifer Yang, Washington	72-71-72—215
4.	Ying Luo, Washington	70-72-75—217
5.	Madchen Ly, Fresno State	74-72-72—218
TEAM STANDINGS
1.	Pepperdine	290-287-293—870
2.	Washington	290-290-299—879
3.	UC Davis	298-296-296—890
4.	San Jose State	296-307-296—899
5.	Mississippi	303-302-299—904
6.	Santa Clara	301-301-306—908
7.	Colorado	301-303-305—909
8.	Fresno State	308-306-296—910
9.	Oregon State	307-303-306—916
10.	Long Beach State	309-306-302—917
11.	Cal Poly	317-306-298—921
12.	Hawaii	307-308-309—924
13.	UC Riverside	316-316-301—933
14.	Nevada	320-313-302—935
15.	Seattle	318-307-312—937