Feb. 23, 2010
TUCSON, Ariz. - The No. 3 Auburn women's golf team earned an eighth-place finish at the Arizona Wildcat Invitational after carding a 13-over par 297 in the final round. The Tigers combined for a tournament-total 37-over par 605 to land the team in eighth place after starting the day in 11th.
Junior Cydney Clanton led the Tigers with a 1-under-par 70 in the final round to finish in a tie for fourth with a 36-hole total of 2-over-par 144. Clanton, ranked third in the nation according to the Golfweek/Sagarin index, has finished in the top five of every tournament Auburn has competed in this season.
"We had a couple of big holes that really cost us," Auburn head coach Kim Evans said. "I felt like we could have finished in sixth, so we are a little disappointed. We set a target and we felt like we could get to six. It's close, but we got halfway there." The tournament schedule called for three rounds to be played over a span of only two days, but Tuesday's round served as the second and final 18 holes due to inclement weather on Monday.
"It is a tough course to start your spring season at," Evans said. "We got out to a bad start yesterday with extreme weather, and you cannot make a move in extreme weather.
"Today we got off to a better start, but the conditions didn't stay good. In fact, they got worse as the day went on. We stayed in it, and that's all you can ask for. If we could play again tomorrow or take away the first day, I think we would be ready."
After one round of play, Auburn faced a difficult task of climbing back into contention, but the team met the challenge. Each member of the Auburn squad improved their score in the final round, improving by 11 strokes to close out the tournament.
Hosted by the University of Arizona, the Wildcat Invitational was a stroke play event that took place at the par-71, 6,166 yard Arizona National Golf Club in Tucson, Ariz. The two-day event featured 10 teams ranked in the GolfWorld top-25 coaches' poll.
Clanton was the only Tiger to card a sub-par round at the tournament with her 1-under 70 on Tuesday. She was able to shave four strokes off her first-round score.
"Cydney had one big hole closing out yesterday, but other than that, she's right back in there," Evans said of Clanton's performance. "She played well and she handled herself well and really stayed in it from start to finish. My hat's off to her at this tremendous golf course and in this tremendous weather."
Sophomore Patricia Sanz logged her best finish of the season as she tied for 14th with a final tally of 6-over par 148. Sanz, who finished the first round with a 75, improved to a 2-over 73 to close out the two-day event. The 36-hole score of 148 serves as a new 36-hole low for the Spain native.
Following Sanz was senior Candace Schepperle, who carded a 5-over 76 in the final round to bring her to a tournament-total 14-over par 156. After besting her first round by four strokes, Schepperle claimed a tie for 50th individually after starting the final day in a tie for 68th.
Bringing in the fourth score for the Tigers, sophomore Haley Wilson earned a tie for 53rd, finishing the tournament with a 15-over 157. Wilson tallied a 7-over par 78 in the final round. Redshirt junior Karlin Beck logged a 12-over 83 in the final round to finish the event in a tie for 88th with a tournament-total 29-over 171.
Also competing in the two-day tournament was Auburn freshman Carlie Yadloczky. The newcomer competed as an individual and earned a tie for 27th after a 5-over 76 performance in the final round. Yadloczky finished with a 9-over par 151 in the tournament.
Keeping the momentum from day one, four west coast teams held strong in the top four spots to close out the event. Arizona State claimed the top spot with an 8-over par 576, while host Arizona took second with a 20-over par 588. Stanford (595) took third place, California (596) took fourth and Duke (599) rounded out the top-5.
Individually, Caroline Hedwall of Oklahoma State carded a tournament-best 5-under par 66 in the final round to claim the top position with a 6-under 136. Arizona State's Juliana Murcia and Duke's Alison Whitaker tied for second place with a 1-under 141s. Tying for fourth place were Clanton, New Mexico's Jodi Ewart and Arizona State's Jennifer Johnson with 2-over-par 144s.
The Tigers will have a one-week break before hosting a one-day event in Auburn on March 7.
"We need to sit down and evaluate some things," Evans said. "Hopefully we can get there and be competitive. A lot of times, you forget that you're there to beat people and you start playing yourself. The main objective is to beat your opponent. We need to be competitive and get ready."
TUCSON, Ariz. - Final results from the Wildcat Invitational hosted by the University of Arizona at the Arizona National Golf Club. Par: 71. Yardage: 6,166.
TEAM RESULTS
1 - Arizona State - 290-286--576 (+8)
2 - Arizona - 294-294--588 (+10)
3 - Stanford - 293-302--595 (+27)
4 - California - 302-294--596 (+28)
5 - Duke - 296-303--599 (+31)
T6 - New Mexico - 301-300--601 (+33)
T6 - Pepperdine - 295-306--601 (+33)
8 - Auburn - 308-297--605 (+37)
9 - Denver - 304-303--607 (+39)
10 - Oklahoma State - 304-304--608 (+40)
11 - Tennessee - 397-309--616 (+48)
12 - Southern California - 308-310--618 (+50)
13 - Oregon - 309-310--619 (+51)
14 - Washington - 315-307--622 (+54)
15 - UNLV - 314-312--626 (+58)
16 - Tulane - 312-315--627 (+59)
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
T4 - Cydney Clanton - 74-70--144 (+2)
T14 - Patricia Sanz - 75-73--148 (+6)
*T27 - Carlie Yadloczky - 75-76--151 (+9)
T50 - Candace Schepperle - 80-76--156 (+14)
T53 - Haley Wilson - 79-78--157 (+15)
T88 - Karlin Beck - 88-83--171 (+29)