April 30, 2000

MADISON, Wis. -- University of Illinois freshman Laurin Kanda shot an even-par 72 today in the final round of the 2000 Big Ten Women's Golf Championships to earn a tie for fifth place. Kanda was in eighth place entering today's action with rounds of 73, 74 and 76. Her tournament total of 295 strokes is the lowest 72-hole score ever recorded by a University of Illinois women's golfer. Renee Heiken shot the previous low of 299 when she won the Big Ten Title in 1991. The tie for fifth marked Kanda's sixth top-10 finish this season. The last Illinois golfer to finish among the 10 best at the Big Ten Tournament was Becky Beihl. She took second place in 1995.

The Illini finished the season 11th in the Big Ten. They shot a four-round total of 1,264 to finish two strokes behind the 10th-place Iowa Hawkeyes. Purdue won its first Big Ten Women's Golf Championship by shooting a record low of 1,167. The Boilermakers bettered the previous record by 29 strokes. The tournament was held at the 72-par, 5,962-yard University Ridge Golf course in Madison, Wis.