Estrada Leads Duke In Second Round At ACC Championship

CLEMMONS, N.C. - Sparked by a career-best-tying round of 67 by freshman Maria Garcia-Estrada, the Duke women's golf team increased its lead to 29 strokes at the Atlantic Coast Conference Women's Golf Championship being held at the 6,355-yard, par-72 Salem Glen Country Club in Clemmons, N.C.

The Blue Devils (295-286=581) are followed in the team standings by Wake Forest at 310-300=610 and North Carolina in third at 319-299=618. Florida State remains in fourth place with a 36-hole total of 335-315=650, and Maryland is in fifth at 348-349=697.

Following her second round 5-under-par 67, Estrada (76-67=143) took over the individual lead in the event, one stroke ahead of Duke teammate and first-round leader Candy Hannemann, who is at even par 70-74=144 after two rounds. Beth Bauer is the third member of the Blue Devil contingent in the top five as she is in third place two shots off the lead at 73-72=145. North Carolina freshman Abby Spector is alone in fourth place at 76-71=147, and rounding out the top five are Wake Forest junior Marta Prieto at 75-75=150 and Duke junior Kalen Anderson at 77-73=150.

The ACC Championship will conclude tomorrow with the final round of play beginning at 8:30 a.m.

Quoting Duke Head Coach Dan Brooks
"I think the scores got a lot better today just as I expected they would. The scores will go down tomorrow to. The scores for Carolina and Wake Forest were good today. So we just keep trying to make our best golf a little bit better. We are always thinking about nationals and thinking about the level of play we need to be at. We are not overally concerned about wins and losses right now, we are concerned about our personal performances and can we finish. I want to know if we can play this kind of golf today and if we can finish tomorrow. If we can play a good round the last day of a tournament where we performed pretty well the first two days."

On Garcia-Estrada...
"I really thought she was gonna go to 65 because she was hitting it so well and seemed so confident. She seemed so levelheaded going into the last two holes. You know the 17th hole just got away from her. It wasn't a terrible play or anything. It was just a little weakly hit first put. It was a great round of golf, she was really on today. She was staking it. The only chip she hit all day she chiped in the hole for an eagle. That is the third eagle she had in the last two tournaments. This is a kid that really comes alive in competition. Her game looks totally different in practice to competition. She has some magical things that happen I think. She is a real firey type of player and is fun to watch."

On Beth Bauer...
"Real happy with Beth [Bauer]. She said her putter was a little bit better today. That is the variable with her right now, wether that putter is going to work. It worked real well on the front and the backside was a little rough. She is coming together well."

On Candy Hannemann...
"Candy obviously I am extremely excited about the way she is coming back around again. This is the typ of golf we need Candy Hannemann to play. She is comfortable here."

Quoting Maria Garcia-Estrada...
"This morning I wasn't hitting the ball good on the range. Then when I went on the golf course I just started hitting everything so well. I was on top of the ball and I was thinking to myself I am going to this right by the pin there is no way I can hit it further. It was basically I hit very close to the pin on a lot of holes. That is how I made my birdies. I chipped in on No. 15, which is a par five, for eagle."

"It just felt good. A key thing was I wasn't thinking about score at all. I wasn't thinking oh I hope it finishes out because I like the score I have now. I said just keep on playing and see what happens. I was having so much fun on the golf course. Plus I played with my friend [Maria Beautell] from Wake Forest. We have known each other since we were three years old. We have spent all our lives together. So it was really cool to play with her."

ACC Championship
Salem Glen Country Club Clemmons, NC
Tournament Dates: 04/14 - 04/16
Par: 72
Yardage: 6355

Fin Top 20 Teams Scores 1 Duke University 295 286 581 2 Wake Forest Univ. 310 300 610 3 North Carolina, U of 319 299 618 4 Florida State Univ. 335 315 650 5 Maryland, U. of 348 349 697

Fin Top 20 Players School Scores 1 Maria Garcia-Estrada Duke 76 67 143 2 Candy Hannemann Duke 70 74 144 3 Beth Bauer Duke 73 72 145 4 Abby Spector N Carolina 76 71 147 5 Marta Prieto Wk. Forest 75 75 150 Kalen Anderson Duke 77 73 150 7 Maria Beautell Wk. Forest 78 73 151 Kristina Engstrom Duke 76 75 151 9 Marcy Newton N Carolina 80 74 154 Kristin Tamulis Florida St 77 77 154 11 Kelly Kirwin Wk. Forest 80 76 156 12 Heather Angell N Carolina 81 77 158 13 Louise Wright Florida St 87 72 159 Kathryn Brenny Wk. Forest 83 76 159 15 Nuria Clau Wk. Forest 77 84 161 16 Beth Lever N Carolina 86 77 163 17 Britta Olson N Carolina 82 83 165 18 Beth McCumber Florida St 88 80 168 19 Kristen Sanborn Florida St 83 88 171 20 Brooke Bendler Maryland 84 89 173

Sunday Pairings
9:11 - Kristina Engstrom, DU - Britta Olson, UNC - Nuria Clau, WFU
9:20 - Kalen Anderson, DU - Beth Lever, UNC - Kathryn Brenny, WFU
9:29 - Beth Bauer, DU - Heahter Angell, UNC - Kelly Kirwin, WFU
9:38 - Candy Hannemann, DU - Marcy Newton, UNC - Maria Beautell, WFU
9:47 - Maria Garcia-Estrada, DU - Abby Spector, UNC - Marta Prieto, WFU