Women's Golf Storms Back to Win the NCAA Preview

Sunday, October 25

Wilmington, N.C.

All Day

Duke University

Day Three

Women's Golf Storms Back to Win the NCAA Preview

10/25/2009 8:15:00 PM | Women's Golf

By: Duke Sports Information

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WILMINGTON, N.C. - Over the 26 years as the head coach of the Duke women's golf team, Dan Brooks has posted some very memorable victories, including five NCAA Championships. The Blue Devils added another great memory on Sunday at the very challenging NCAA Fall Preview as the Blue Devils stormed back from being down 10 strokes to No. 1 UCLA and won by one over fourth-ranked Auburn and UCLA.

As a team, Duke registered an even-par, 288, on Sunday to tie for the best round of the morning and went on to finish the weekend with a 54-hole total of 881 with 18-hole ledgers of 296, 297 and 288. The Blue Devils collected a total of 19 birdies and one eagle on Sunday at the 6,325-yard, par 72 Pete Dye Course at the Country Club of Landfall in Wilmington, N.C.

"I am very proud of this team," said Brooks. "I am proud of Alison for leading the way and getting under-par the last two days. I am real proud of our freshmen, but what is great is we got contribution from everybody on the team. It just seemed like everyone was solid and handled the situation very well."

UCLA (882) finished tied for second with Auburn (882), while Arizona State (889), Virginia (891), Purdue (892), Wake Forest (895), Denver (898), Alabama (903), Michigan State (904) and Georgia (912) closed out the top 10. The field was one of the most challenging Duke has faced all season.

"It is a great way to finish the fall," commented Brooks. "I personally wish we had another tournament. I feel like people still want to play and are excited about playing. It is always nice to go into the offseason with a win. I think it is motivational. There is a little bit of clarity, probably, for people on what they need to work on. That is a good thing to have come out of a fall tournament."

Senior Alison Whitaker led the Duke charge on the final day as she carded a three-under-par, 69, which marked her second straight under-par round to close out the NCAA Fall Preview. A product of Melbourne, Australia, Whitaker finished with a three-day total of 217, which was tied for fifth -- her best finish of the season. For the round, she hit 11 fairways, 11 greens and had 26 putts.

"My putting was a lot better, which really helped momentum wise," said Whitaker. "When the putts fall in I think it is a little easier to stay optimistic -- it shouldn't be but that is just the way golf rolls. If the putts are falling you have a little more in your corner and in your arsenal to go out there and keep hungry for birdies."

Whitaker opened her day one-over-par through seven holes, before having an up-and-down next seven holes that included four birdies, two bogeys and one par to move to one-under-par. The two-time All-ACC selection opened her round on hole No. 5 -- so she closed with holes one through four and made the most of them registering birdies on No. 2 and No. 4. Over the final five overall holes, Whitaker was three-under-par. Her birdie on the 122-yard, par three second hole came off a 30-foot putt.

"Any win when you really dig deep and come from behind is a good one," said Whitaker. "With us having such a young team and having three freshmen going straight into the lineup, it is great for them to get their first taste of what it feels like winning. Hopefully, that will motivate us in the offseason to work even harder and make the other teams have to work harder to chase us all the time."

Three Blue Devils carded a one-over-par, 73, on the final day from Stacey Kim, Courtney Ellenbogen and Kim Donovan. Kim, a freshman from Columbus, Ga., concluded the weekend with a career-best tied for 12th place finish with rounds of 72, 75 and 73 for a total of 220. She posted four birdies, drained over 25-foot birdie putts on No. 2 and No. 18, while finishing with a career-best 25 putts. Kim hit 14 fairways and 13 greens-in-regulation on the day.

Ellenbogen totaled her best round of the tournament on Sunday as she also netted a career-best 25 putts, hit 13 fairways and eight greens. Her day was highlighted by notching five up-and-downs to go along with three birdies and her first collegiate eagle on the sixth hole. A native of Blacksburg, Va., Ellenbogen finished tied for 36th with a 54-hole total of 226. On her eagle, she holed a 90-yard shot using a gap wedge, which landed 15 feet under the hole and rolled in.

"We are really excited [with the win]," commented Ellenbogen. "This is my first college win so its a new experience and one that I want to keep as long as possible. It is a great confidence builder for the spring and good motivator for the winter to keep us going through the next few months so we can be ready to continue in the spring."

Donovan, who hails from Hopkinton, Mass., came back from a disappointing second round to card a 73 on the final day, which moved her up to tied for 50th overall at 229. She registered four birdies on the day including a 30-foot birdie putt over a ridge on the 501-yard, par five fourth hole. Donovan hit 14 fairways, 13 greens and had 31 putts on the day.

Freshman Lindy Duncan concluded the NCAA Fall Preview with a 76 on her way to placing tied for 20th overall with a 222. A product of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Duncan managed only two birdies on the day, but notched her fourth straight top 20 finish to open her collegiate career.

Duke closed out the fall season with a victory, which marked the 109th career win for Brooks.

"To be down by 10 strokes in the NCAA Fall Preview and come back to win makes it pretty special," said Brooks.

Duke will next compete in the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge on Feb. 8-10 in Los Angeles, Calif.

Duke Results
T26 T5 Alison Whitaker Duke 77 71 69 217 +1
T16 T12 Stacey Kim Duke 72 75 73 220 +4
T11 T20 Lindy Duncan Duke 71 75 76 222 +6
T51 T36 Courtney Ellenbogen Duke 77 76 73 226 +10
T58 T50 Kim Donovan Duke 76 80 73 229 +13

-d-u-k-e-

1 2 3 Team Scores
4 T4 1 Duke 296 297 288 881 +17
T2 1 T2 UCLA 293 290 299 882 +18
6 6 T2 Auburn 299 295 288 882 +18
T2 3 4 Arizona State 293 299 297 889 +25
7 7 5 Virginia 300 296 295 891 +27
10 T4 6 Purdue 302 291 299 892 +28
13 2 7 Wake Forest 304 287 304 895 +31
T8 9 8 Denver, Univ. of 301 297 300 898 +34
5 15 9 Alabama, U. of 298 310 295 903 +39
T8 T11 10 Michigan State 301 305 298 904 +40
T14 T11 T11 Georgia 305 301 306 912 +48
17 16 T11 North Carolina 308 303 301 912 +48
16 10 T11 LSU 307 298 307 912 +48
T14 T11 T14 Oklahoma State 305 301 307 913 +49
T11 17 T14 New Mexico 303 313 297 913 +49
1 8 16 Southern California 288 309 319 916 +52
T11 T11 17 Pepperdine 303 303 313 919 +55
18 18 18 N. Car. Wilmington 317 303 313 933 +69

Start Finish Player Team Scores
2 1 Cydney Clanton Auburn 70 70 70 210 -6
T9 2 Brittany Altomare Virginia 74 71 70 215 -1
T16 T3 Camilla Lennarth Alabama, U. of 68 79 69 216 E
1 T3 Cheyenne Woods Wake Forest 70 69 77 216 E
T5 T5 Stephanie Kono UCLA 73 71 73 217 +1
T26 T5 Alison Whitaker Duke 77 71 69 217 +1
T5 T7 Stephanie Sherlock Denver, Univ. of 73 71 74 218 +2
T5 T7 Numa Gulyanamitta Purdue 72 72 74 218 +2
3 T7 Carlota Ciganda Arizona State 68 74 76 218 +2
4 T10 Candace Schepperle Auburn 75 68 76 219 +3
T5 T10 Jennifer Johnson Arizona State 73 71 75 219 +3
T16 T12 Stacey Kim Duke 72 75 73 220 +4
T26 T12 Jodi Ewart New Mexico 75 73 72 220 +4
T16 T12 Lizette Salas Southern California 72 75 73 220 +4
T11 T12 Megan McChrystal LSU 73 73 74 220 +4
T16 T12 Marta Silva Zamora Georgia 72 75 73 220 +4
T11 T17 Caroline Hedwall Oklahoma State 74 72 75 221 +5
T11 T17 Dolores White Wake Forest 76 70 75 221 +5
T48 T17 Jennifer Kirby Alabama, U. of 76 76 69 221 +5
T9 T20 Sofia Hagsund N. Car. Wilmington 73 72 77 222 +6
T16 T20 Sydnee Michaels UCLA 74 73 75 222 +6
T26 T20 Brianna Do UCLA 73 75 74 222 +6
T11 T20 Lindy Duncan Duke 71 75 76 222 +6
T16 T24 Calle Nielson Virginia 72 75 76 223 +7
T26 T24 Kate Thomas North Carolina 74 74 75 223 +7
T16 T24 Maude-Aimee LeBlanc Purdue 75 72 76 223 +7
T11 T24 Tiffany Lua UCLA 73 73 77 223 +7
T33 T24 Nicole Agnello Virginia 75 74 74 223 +7
T33 29 Lisa McCloskey Pepperdine 76 73 75 224 +8
T40 T30 Rebecca Hellbom New Mexico 71 80 74 225 +9
T33 T30 Catherine O'Donnell North Carolina 75 74 76 225 +9
T40 T30 Emilie Burger Georgia 76 75 74 225 +9
T33 T30 Jaclyn Sweeney Arizona State 74 75 76 225 +9
T48 T30 Caroline Powers Michigan State 77 75 73 225 +9
T40 T30 Carlie Yadloczky Auburn 74 77 74 225 +9
T53 T36 Courtney Gunter North Carolina 77 77 72 226 +10
T51 T36 Courtney Ellenbogen Duke 77 76 73 226 +10
T62 T38 Giulia Molinaro Arizona State 78 79 70 227 +11
T38 T38 Jessica Wallace Pepperdine 73 77 77 227 +11
T40 T38 Kishi Sinha Purdue 77 74 76 227 +11
T58 T38 Shannon Warner Michigan State 83 73 71 227 +11
T33 T38 Ellie Givens Denver, Univ. of 73 76 78 227 +11
T16 T38 Amalie Valle LSU 74 73 80 227 +11
T26 T38 Carmen Perez-Narbon N. Car. Wilmington 74 74 79 227 +11
T26 T38 Kimberly Kim Denver, Univ. of 74 74 79 227 +11
T40 T38 Jane Rah Oklahoma State 74 77 76 227 +11
T38 T47 Laura Kueny Michigan State 71 79 78 228 +12
T16 T47 Glory Yang UCLA 74 73 81 228 +12
T40 T47 Martine de Gannes Pepperdine 75 76 77 228 +12
T26 T50 Inah Park Southern California 72 76 81 229 +13
T58 T50 Kim Donovan Duke 76 80 73 229 +13
T53 T52 Thea Hoffmeister Purdue 81 73 76 230 +14
T40 T52 Victoria Park Oklahoma State 76 75 79 230 +14
T62 T54 Michelle Shin Wake Forest 81 76 74 231 +15
T62 T54 Sue Kim Denver, Univ. of 81 76 74 231 +15
T68 T54 Laura G. Escallon Purdue 78 80 73 231 +15
T40 T54 Kendall Wright Georgia 79 72 80 231 +15
T53 T54 Brooke Pancake Alabama, U. of 77 77 77 231 +15
T75 T54 Patty Sanz Auburn 80 80 71 231 +15
T51 T54 Lindsey Solberg Michigan State 75 78 78 231 +15
T48 T54 Natalie Sheary Wake Forest 77 75 79 231 +15
T72 62 Sarah Salvo New Mexico 79 80 73 232 +16
T62 T63 Lauren Greenlief Virginia 81 76 76 233 +17
T62 T63 Aimee Neff Michigan State 78 79 76 233 +17
T72 T63 Lindy LaBauve LSU 83 76 74 233 +17
T56 T63 Stephaine Kim Wake Forest 82 73 78 233 +17
T75 67 Kelly Drack Denver, Univ. of 81 79 74 234 +18
T58 T68 Mary Michael Maggio LSU 80 76 79 235 +19
80 T68 Haley Wilson Auburn 82 80 73 235 +19
T62 T70 Milena Savich Georgia 78 79 79 236 +20
T56 T70 Caroline Kim Southern California 73 82 81 236 +20
T68 T70 Courtney McKim Oklahoma State 81 77 78 236 +20
T58 73 Rhea Nair Alabama, U. of 77 79 81 237 +21
T68 74 Courtney Harter Alabama, U. of 80 78 80 238 +22
82 T75 Whitney Neuhauser Virginia 79 85 75 239 +23
79 T75 Ashley Tait N. Car. Wilmington 82 79 78 239 +23
T75 T75 Sarah Thead North Carolina 82 78 79 239 +23
T72 78 Britney Choy New Mexico 78 81 81 240 +24
T68 79 Stefanie Endstrasser Southern California 75 83 84 242 +26
81 80 Carolina Andrade Georgia 82 81 80 243 +27
T75 81 Kaitlin Drolson Pepperdine 83 77 84 244 +28
84 T82 Cristina Manrique N. Car. Wilmington 88 78 79 245 +29
83 T82 Abby Oberthier LSU 80 85 80 245 +29
T85 T84 Jordan Allyne North Carolina 84 85 78 247 +31
T85 T84 Bethany Buchner New Mexico 89 80 78 247 +31
T85 T84 Hillary Wood Oklahoma State 92 77 78 247 +31
T85 87 Alei Mitchell N. Car. Wilmington 88 81 80 249 +33
T16 - Belen Mozo Southern California 71 76 W - -
89 - Juliana Murcia Arizona State 78 W W - -
90 - Taylore Karle Pepperdine 79 W W - -