University of Illinois
Lady Buckeye Invitational
Illinois Ties Eighth-Best Round in School History
April 23, 2006 | Women's Golf
April 23, 2006
DUBLIN, Ohio - More than three years after head coach Paula Smith's golfers broke 300 at the Mary Fossum Invitational in Sept. 2002, the Orange and Blue recorded four scores in the 70s in Sunday afternoon's Lady Buckeye Invitational to accomplish the Illini feat again.
Sunday's 298 tied for eighth-best total in school history, seven strokes behind the Illini record 291 etched on Nov. 2, 2002 at the Pat Bradley Championship. Illinois last shot 298 as host of the Lady Northern in Sept. 2001.
"I'm very happy because the wind was a factor today," Smith said. "On this course there's a lot of trouble. If you're not on the short grass you're either in the water or in some heavy rough. To tie for the fifth-lowest score in the tournament today is pretty good because this group of schools is very impressive."
Neither sophomore Seul Ki Park nor her teammates had ever seen the Golf Course at Dublin before Saturday, but three of five golfers scored in the 70s on the opening day of the tournament, and each made adjustments on day two to join some of the Illini's all-time best.
Park led the team effort with an even-par 72 to finish tied for 17th in a field that featured six of Golfweek's Top-25 teams.
"Going in I didn't think about the players or teams," Park said. "It wasn't intimidating. I just went out and played my best, but knowing that I played well was great. Top-20 is really good."
SEC-power and the nation's fourth-ranked Auburn Tigers won the 26th annual Lady Buckeye Invitational, as No. 3 Maria Martinez (-9) edged teammate and 36th-ranked Nicole Hage. Hage (-8) made up three strokes on day two but could not overcome her senior teammate. SEC conference rival Florida traded places with Purdue on the tournament's second day but still ended the day 27 strokes behind the Tigers.
Days before the Big Ten tournament in Bloomington, the Lady Buckeye Invitational record performance and the team's pair of top-ten finishes this spring, have Illinois sophomore Casey Burden and teammates hopeful for continued success.
"Playing well right before Big Tens is a huge confidence booster," Burden said. "It gives us that feeling that we can out there and do this again."
Lady Buckeye Invitational final results 1. Auburn 288-280-281=849 2. Florida 289-295-292=876 3. Purdue 287-296-294=877 4. Kent State 287-302-298=887 5. Ohio State 297-301-290=888 6. Michigan State 290-297-304=891 7. Louisiana State 293-300-301=894 8. Penn State 295-301-306=902 9. Northwestern 300-305-300=905 10. Georgia State 304-303-300=907 11. ILLINOIS 305-309-298=912 12. Wisconsin 306-299-313=918 13. Indiana 306-307-308=921 14 Ohio State (Gray) 308-309-312=929 15. Minnesota 321-315-312=948Illinois results T17. Seul Ki Park 76-74-72=222 T35. Casey Burden 76-77-74=227 T53. Stephanie Mory 78-78-75=231 T62. Megan Godfrey 79-80-77=236 T66. Meghan Naik 75-81-82=238
Big Ten Championships
