Sept. 9, 2011
Notre Dame, Ind. – Notre Dame women’s golf coach Susan Holt has announced that senior golfer Becca Huffer (Denver, Colo.) will serve as the team’s captain for the 2011-12 season.
A three-time all-BIG EAST selection, Huffer is coming off her best season at Notre Dame as she turned in four, top-10 finishes as a junior, including a career-best second-place finish at the John Kirk/Panther Intercollegiate last spring as she carded a five-under par 211 in leading the Irish to a tournament win. For the season, Huffer’s 74.97 stroke average was second on the team and the second lowest of her career. In 34 career tournaments, covering 100 rounds, the industrial design major owns a 75.14 career stroke average that is second best in the program’s history.
“Over the last three years, Becca has been an exemplary student-athlete for our program,” says Irish head coach Susan Holt.
“She’s done a great job in the classroom and a great job on the course. She has a wonderful work ethic and when you combine those three things, it’s easy for her teammates to look up to her and respect her. That’s important for a captain to have those types of attributes. She is going to do a great job and I’m proud of her. Becca’s had a great career here and has earned the chance to be the team’s leader.”
During her Notre Dame golf career, Huffer has helped the Irish to a BIG EAST Championship in 2011 and two second-place finishes in 2009 and 2010. The 2009 BIG EAST rookie of the year, she had her best conference finish last season as she finished fourth overall with a seven-over par 223. Huffer has participated in three NCAA Regionals and in 2011 helped Notre Dame to its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Championship. As a junior in 2010-11, Huffer helped Notre Dame to its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Championships as the team finished fifth at the Central Regional and then 22nd in the NCAA Championships in Bryan, Tex. There, she was Notre Dame’s top finisher with a 72-hole total of eight-over par, 296.
“It’s exciting and a great honor to be named captain at Notre Dame. I’m excited to have a chance to lead our team this season,” says Huffer.
“I think we can pick up where we left off last season. We’ve added some good freshmen. Our first tournament will be a good challenge for us as we face some top teams. It will give us a chance to see where we are at early in the year.”
Huffer and her teammates open the 2011 fall campaign on Sept. 19 when they compete in the Golfweek Conference Challenge at the Red Sky Golf Club in Wolcott, Colo. This tournament will feature the top-ranked team in each conference based on last season’s fall Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings. The previous year’s winners receive automatic invitations to defend their titles. This is the third year that Golfweek has sponsored this tournament and the first time that Notre Dame has participated.