Blue Devils Open Action at Windy City Collegiate Classic

WILMETTE, Ill. – The Duke women's golf team opened action Monday at the Windy City Collegiate Classic by playing 36 holes at the Westmoreland Country Club in Wilmete, Ill. Blue Devil sophomore Katie Li carded a 1-under-par, 71, in round one and then freshman Anna Cañado Espinal fired a career-best even-par, 72, in the second round to pace the Blue Devils.

Duke was one of nine teams to finish 36 holes with the remaining teams having to wrap up their second round early Tuesday morning due to darkness.

How It Happened – Round One

Duke opened both rounds on hole No. 10.
Leading the charge for the Blue Devil in round one was sophomore Katie Li, who carded a 1-under-par, 71 and was sixth overall through 18 holes.
Li had a slow start with three bogeys over her first four holes, while rolling in a birdie on the par-5 11th hole.She went on to play the next nine holes at 3-under-par with birdies on No. 15, No. 16 and No. 2 to get to 1-under.Li suffered bogeys on No. 5 and No. 7, but closed straight by draining birdies on No. 8 and No. 9 to finish with a 71.
Junior Andie Smith had Duke's best start to the morning as she sank a 7-foot birdie on her opening hole, No. 10, to kick off the day at 1-under.She then registered 10 consecutive pars, before dropping shots on No. 3, No. 5 and No. 6.Smith, who hails from Hobe Sound, Fla., connected on her second birdie of the day on the par-4 seventh, while parring the final two holes to finish with a 73.
After moving to 4-over-par through 12 holes, freshman Carla De Troia closed with a flurry shooting 2-under over her final six holes to finish with a 2-over, 74.She rolled in back-to-back birdies on No. 7 and No. 8 to bring her score down to a 74.
Rookie Anna Cañado Espinal opened the morning with a 4-over-par score through seven holes. She turned it around to finish even par over her final 11 holes with birdies on No. 17 and No. 7. Espinal signed for a 76 in round one.
After turning in a career-best finish at the ANNIKA Intercollegiate, senior Rylie Heflin finished with a 78 in round one.This included her third collegiate eagle and the first since her freshman campaign. Heflin holed out from 105 yards with her gap wedge for the eagle.

How It Happened – Round Two

Espinal paced the Blue Devils in round two with a collegiate-best, even-par 72 to move herself into a tie for 21st overall on the individual leaderboard.A Barcelona, Spain product, Espinal opened with a par and then birdied the 505-yard, par-5 11th hole.Following the birdie, she reeled off nine-straight pars.Espinal suffered to straight bogeys on No. 3 and No. 4, but closed with four pars and a birdie on No. 8 to finish with a 72.
De Troia opened the second round with three bogeys, one par and one birdie over her first five holes.She then settled down and played her final 13 holes at 1-under-par with birdies on No. 15 and No. 6.De Troia finished with a 73 and enters the final round in a tie for 16th with a 147.
Smith is also tied for 16th through 36 holes with a 3-over, 147, with rounds of 73 and 74.After making the turn with a 2-over, 38, Smith played her final nine holes at even-par with a 3-foot birdie on No. 2 and 15-foot birdie on No. 8.
Heflin was held without a birdie for the second straight round as she finished with an 80.
Following her solid first round of a 1-under, 71, Li struggled in the afternoon turning in an 81.She made the turn with a 2-over, 38, but on her final nine holes she was 7-over.It marked Li's highest score since arriving in Durham.

Notes

As a team, Duke totaled rounds of 294 and 299 and is 10th overall with a 593.Arizona State holds the lead with a 579.
Anna Cañado Espinal posted her first even-par round during the second 18 holes on Monday afternoon.
Katie Li hit 14 greens, 12 fairways and had 31 putts in round one.
Junior Andie Smith hit 29-of-36 greens on Monday.
Freshman Carla De Troia posted a career-low 36-hole total of 147.
Duke notched 13 birdies in round one and nine birdies in round two.

Quotes

"We had more good holes than the score indicates.The course played tough despite relatively calm and dry conditions. Attitudes on the team are great; they'll be ready to play hard tomorrow."-- Duke head coach Dan Brooks

What is Next

Duke will close the third round Tuesday beginning at 9:57 a.m. (ET) on hole No. 10 along with Arizona State and Oregon.

To stay up to date with Blue Devils women's golf, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeWGOLF".

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Duke Results
Andie Smith 73-74=147 (T16)
Carla De Troia 74-73=147 (T16)
Anna Cañado Espinal 76-72=148 (T21)
Katie Li 71-81=152 (T48)
Rylie Heflin 78-80=158 (T67)