Chattanooga Women’s Golf Opens at No. 12 in Golfweek/Sagarin Ratings Index
Lady Mocs reach Top 25 ranking in program’s third year
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CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.---The opening two tournaments proved a lot to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s golf team as to its ability to compete on the national level. With wins over the likes of Duke, North Carolina and Oklahoma State, three top 10 programs in 2009, it is not shocking to see the Lady Mocs are ranked No. 12 in the first Golfweek/Sagarin Ratings Index of the season.
Florida is ranked No. 1 as the SEC owns the top five spot with South Carolina, LSU, Auburn and Georgia trailing. Arizona State comes in at No. 6, while Pepperdine, Florida State, Cal and Ohio State round out the top 10.
“It is certainly rewarding, but not nearly the end,” said third-year head coach Colette Murray. “It may be surprising to some, but I will be surprised if we don’t maintain it. This is a talented team and honestly we haven’t played as well as I believe we will as the year goes on.”
The No. 12 ranking is the best in the program’s brief history. It is the first top 25 ranking for the program as well. The Lady Mocs are currently ranked ahead of the likes of Alabama (14), Virginia (16), Texas A&M (17), Tennessee (19), North Carolina (20) and Duke (24).
The Southern Conference is very well-represented in the opening ratings. Chattanooga is the top-ranked program at No. 12 followed by Western Carolina at No. 21 and Furman at No. 22. The SoCon is one of just four conferences with three or more teams represented along with the SEC (7), ACC (4) and Big 12 (3).
Chattanooga already owns seven wins against top 25 competition which is sixth in the country in behind Florida (11), South Carolina (10), LSU (8), Auburn (8) and Georgia (11). The Lady Mocs 23 wins overall thus far is second only to UGa’s 28 through Friday’s, Sept. 18, ratings summary. Two of the Lady Mocs wins are against No. 10 Ohio State and No. 11 Oklahoma State.
Individually, sophomore Maria Salinas is the Lady Mocs top-ranked player at No. 66. Juniors Emma de Groot at No. 103 and Christine Wolf at No. 146 are also ranked in the top 150.
Western Carolina Women’s Golf Ranked 21st in Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings
Catamounts have won back-to-back team titles with consecutive individual medalists
Cullowhee, N.C. ? Back-to-back team championships including consecutive individual medalists has the Western Carolina women’s golf team nationally ranked in the first Golfweek/Sagarin Ratings Index of the season, hitting the charts at No. 21 this week. It is the highest ranking ever for a WCU women’s golf team.
Full National Rankings: http://www.golfweekrankings.com/ellington/default.asp?t=wt
WCU is one of three Southern Conference teams to appear in the first national rankings as Chattanooga debuted at No. 12 on the ledger and Furman just behind the Catamounts in 22nd overall. College of Charleston rounded out the top 50 in the rankings to give the conference four on the ledger. The SoCon is one of just four conferences with three or more teams represented along with the SEC (7), ACC (4) and Big 12 (3).
“We are very excited to have had such a good showing this early in our season,” said WCU head coach Steve Lott, who claimed his 20th career team championship at the helm with last weekend’s win at the Great Smokies Intercollegiate. “Our success thus far is a direct correlation with our team’s excitement and drive to succeed on the course. This is a very talented group of young ladies who can set a new standard for future Catamount squads.”
He added, “This is a very long season including both a fall and spring schedule. Hopefully this ranking will continue to motivate us to prepare every week and to improve throughout the season.”
With all five golfers inside the top eight, including the individual championship of junior Josefine Sundh, WCU won the season-opening Draper Valley Intercollegiate, cruising to a 14-stroke victory. The individual title was the first in Sundh’s three-year collegiate career and gives WCU four on the squad that have medaled in tournament action.
Then, last weekend, the Catamounts shared team championship honors with fellow conference member, Elon, after shooting two-under, 286, as a team in the opening round of the rain-shortened Great Smokies Intercollegiate, presented by Wolf Creek Tree Farm and Nursery. Four golfers finished tied for the individual championship at three-under, 69, including freshman Malin Jansson and senior Tiffany Schisler, who was playing as an individual.
The co-medalist honors were the first career for both Jansson and Schisler.
It was the seventh team title at the Great Smokies for Western, while the four individual co-champions including a pair of Catamounts, the first for WCU since 2005. The 36-hole event was shortened to just 18 after heavy rains the week prior, coupled with downpours on Sunday made the course unplayable. It was just the second time the tournament was not played completely through in the 11-year history of the event.
Western Carolina is off to its best start since the 2005-06 when it captured three-straight team titles with three individual medalist honors. WCU won at Draper Valley, the Sea Trail Intercollegiate and the Great Smokies that season, with Malin Fryk capturing her first individual title in the opener and Ashley Hovda winning back-to-back titles in the second two events.
Thus far this season, senior Desiree Karlsson and Sundh are shooting below par, posting stroke averages of 71.30 and 71.67, respectively. Sophomore Blaire Minter and freshman Malin Jansson are averaging career-best 73.67 through the first two events.
Western Carolina returns to action this weekend at the Sea Trails Intercollegiate, hosted by Elon on the Byrd Course at the Sea Trails Golf Club in Sunset Beach, N.C. The Catamounts placed third at the same event back in the 2006-07 season after winning the tournament in 2005-06.