Photo by: DU Media Relations
The success for the No. 9 DU women’s golf team continues to roll on as the golfers finished in third place at the NCAA Central regional on Saturday in Austin, Texas, and will advance to the NCAA championships for the second consecutive season.
The Pioneers started off the opening round of their seventh consecutive regional appearance with a 4 over par 292 to sit in fourth place, nine shots back of leader UCLA. Just like at the Sun Belt Conference championships, the second round turned out to be a challenge for DU as they shot a 10 over par 298 and remained in fourth place. 95 degree heat and strong gusty winds proved quite a challenge for players during the second round.
Both the weather and the Pioneers improved in the final round as DU shot another 4 over par to jump to third place.
The third place finish marks Denver’s best ever finish at a regional, improving off of last year’s third place finish that launched the Pioneers to their first-ever NCAA championship. This season marks the first time that DU will make consecutive appearances in the championship.
Leading the way for Denver was sophomore Stephanie Sherlock who shot a 54-hole score of 4 over par 220 to finish in a tie for 14th. Sherlock shot an opening-round 2 over par 74 and then responded with an even-par 72 during the second round when the conditions were less than ideal.
Sherlock finished off the regional with a two-over par 74.
Also counting scores for the Pioneers was senior Chelsea Benton who shot a remarkable final round of 3 under par 69 on her way to a final score of 5 over par 221 good for a 19th place tie. Benton started the final round in a tie for 48th place. Junior Dawn Shockley finished with a eight-over par 224 in a tie for 27th, and freshman Ellie Givens recorded a 12-over par 228 good enough for a 41st place finish.
“I’m really proud of the way we played the entire tournament. All five of our players had a hand in our performance this week,” said Head Coach Sammie Chergo.
The Pioneers will look to improve their disappointing 20th place finish at last year’s NCAA championships when they travel to Albuquerque, N.M., May 20-23.
DU opened the 2007 NCAA championships in style, landing in sixth place after the first day when they fired a 14 over par 302 at the Legends Course in Daytona Beach, Fla.
In the second round, Denver fell off course when then freshman Sherlock came down with a viral infection and was forced to withdraw and the Pioneers dropped from sixth place to 22nd with a 36 over par.
DU is a legitimate contender for the NCAA championship. They will look to continue an unbelievable season in a couple weeks and end by bringing home some hardware.
“These players work really hard and are deserving of everything they’ve earned. We are continuing to gain momentum and we are really looking forward to playing our best tournament of the year at the NCAA Championships,” said Chergo.
