Colorado University Athletics
Colorado
Pac-12 Championships
Buffs Surge Into Fifth At Pac-12 Championships
April 21, 2015 | Women's Golf
BOULDER – It was moving day here at the second round of the Women's Golf Pac-12 Championships and the University of Colorado women's golf team did just that, climbing three spots into a tie for fifth.
The Buffaloes posted a 289, 5-over par second round, seven strokes better than their first time through the par 71, 6,407-yard Boulder Country Club, which allowed them to make the biggest jump of any team in the field on Tuesday. Colorado is 17-over par (296-289—585) after 36-holes.
“Our team came out really focused,” said Colorado head coach Anne Kelly. “I am really proud at the way they are fighting. They are giving it their all that's for sure. Like I have said time and time again, the Pac-12 is the best conference in golf. We are just going to continue to fight and see what happens tomorrow.”
First round leader Oregon now has company at the top of the leaderboard. No. 3 UCLA moved up two places and is tied for first with the Ducks at 5-over par. The sixth-ranked Arizona Wildcats also jumped two spots and recorded the only sub-par team score (-2) and are in third, one stroke out of first. Washington, ranked seventh in the nation is in fourth, two behind Arizona at 8-over par. Tied with the Buffs in fifth place is No. 1 USC.
Sophomore Esther Lee shot a team-best 68, 3-under par. She now has five rounds in the 60s this season, which moves her into third place in the CU record book for most-all time. Lee improved her second round by eight strokes and drained four birdies. She was one hole away from finished 4-under, but she had her only bogey of the day on her final hole (No. 9). Lee climbed 25 spots, the most of any individual and is tied for 12th overall.
“Esther played more like the Esther Lee we all know,” Kelly said. “She was disappointed after yesterday and she came out to go today, and played extremely well.”
Junior Alexis Keating turned in another solid performance finishing at 1-over par, 72 and is 2-over (144) for the championship. She bogeyed her second hole, but rebounded with a birdie to drop back to even-par two holes later. Keating pared the next 13, but she also bogeyed No. 9 to close at 1-over. In fact, the ninth hole wasn't very friendly to many of the Buffs on Tuesday as the team combined to shoot 4-over. She is in 12th place, tied with Lee heading into the final round.
Freshman Brittany Fan is tied for 25th at 6-over par 148. She carded a 75 or 4-over in round two. Fan started on the back nine, where she shot even par. She had a bogey and double-bogey, but made up for it with three birdies. Fan then finished going 4-over on the front side. The Pearl City, Hawaii native double-bogeyed No. 1, but settled down to par the next four holes. She went to 3-over with a bogey on No. 6 and concluded the round going par-par-bogey.
Sophomore Natalie Vivaldi posted a 76 or 5-over par and enters the final round tied for 35th place at 9-over (75-76—151). Vivaldi shot 5-over on the front nine and would hold there the remainder of the day after posting an even score on the back nine. She had two bogeys on the back, but paired it with two birdies- doubling her total from round one.
Improving her second round by five strokes was junior Jamie Oleksiew, who shot a 3-over 74, which brings her two-day total to 153 (79-74) or 11-over par. Oleksiew had two birdies and pared 11 holes. She started her round on No. 10 and carded an even-par 36 on the back nine then went plus-3 (38) on the front side. Oleksiew is tied for 42nd overall.
“Jamie was a big key today,” added Kelly. “She played solid golf. I know she wasn't quite pleased with her finish, so hopefully she can use that to her advantage tomorrow and play well again.”
UCLA's Bronte Law shot 4-under (67) on Tuesday and leads the tournament at 5-under, holding a one-stroke advantage over fellow Bruin, Erynne Lee. She is in second at 4-under par. Three players are two strokes off the lead at 3-under par, including Arizona's Lindsey Weaver. The Wildcat matched Law with the only other second-round 67, allowing her to jump nine places into third. Arizona State's Noemi Jimenez and Oregon's Caroline Inglis are also in third place.
The final round of the 2015 Pac-12 Championships is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. MT on Wednesday. The Buffs are paired with USC for a second time. They also played alongside each other on the first day.
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BUFFALO INDIVIDUALS |
||
|
Rank |
Team |
Score |
|
T12. |
72-72—144 |
|
|
T12. |
76-68—144 |
|
|
T25. |
73-75—148 |
|
|
T35. |
75-76—151 |
|
|
T42. |
79-74—153 |
|
|
TOP 5 INDIVIDUALS |
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|
Rank |
Team |
Score |
|
1. |
Bronte Law, UCLA |
70-67—137 |
|
2. |
Erynee Lee, UCLA |
70-68—138 |
|
T3. |
Caroline Inglis, Oregon |
67-72—139 |
|
T3. |
Noemi Jimenez, Arizona State |
69-70—139 |
|
T3. |
Lindsey Weaver, Arizona |
72-67—139 |
|
TEAM SCORES |
||
|
Rank |
Team |
Score |
|
T1. |
Oregon |
284-289—573 |
|
T1. |
UCLA |
287-286—573 |
|
3. |
Arizona |
292-282—574 |
|
4. |
Washington |
289-287—576 |
|
T5. |
COLORADO |
296-289—585 |
|
T5. |
Southern California |
293-292—585 |
|
T7. |
Oregon State |
294-295—589 |
|
T7. |
Stanford |
286-303—589 |
|
9. |
Arizona State |
304-290—594 |
|
10. |
California |
297-299—596 |
|
11. |
Washington State |
299-305—604 |
Players Mentioned
