Oct. 21, 2003
PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Sophomore Sarah Bassett (Spokane, Wash./Lewis and Clark HS) saved her best round for last, firing a 74 in the final round of the 2003 adidas Fall Invitational on Tuesday, leading tournament host Notre Dame to a fifth-place finish in the 14-team competition. Baylor defended its adidas Invitational title, shooting an 888 over the three-day event to hold off Missouri by one stroke after the Tigers carded the lowest team score in the final round (292). Baylor’s Josefin Svenningsson went wire-to-wire in claiming medalist honors, posting a final-round 70 for a 54-hole score of six-under par 210, six shots ahead of Kansas State’s Christine Boucher. The tournament was contested at the par-72, 5,844-yard Lansbrook Golf Club in Palm Harbor, Fla.
Freshman Noriko Nakazaki (Hanover Park, Ill./Hoffman Estates HS) was the top finisher for Notre Dame, tying for 12th place at eight-over par 224. Nakazaki now has placed in the Top 12 at each of her first five collegiate tournaments and the fourth time she has fired a 225 or better in a three-round event.
Freshman Stacy Brown (The Woodlands, Texas/The Woodlands HS) turned in the best finish of her young career, tying for 16th place at 226 after a final-round 75. Junior Karen Lotta (Los Angeles, Calif./Marymount HS) also posted her best showing of the fall, winding up in 20th place at 228, following a 75 on Tuesday. Both Brown and Lotta were competing as individuals and their scores did not count toward Notre Dame’s team score.
Sophomore Katie Brophy (Spokane, Wash./Gonzaga Prep) rose three spots in the final standings, tying for 27th place after her third consecutive round of five-over par 77. Sophomore Lauren Gebauer (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington HS) ended the tournament in 31st place after her final-round 80 gave her a 54-hole score of 232. Meanwhile, senior co-captain Shannon Byrne (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove HS) and sophomore Suzie Hayes (Dublin, Ireland/Loreto College St. Stephen’s Green) landed in a tie for 33rd place at 234 – Byrne carded a 78 and Hayes had a 75 in Tuesday’s final round. Bassett completed the Irish scoring tied for 38th place at 235.
Notre Dame will be back on the links Nov. 3-4 as it closes out its fall schedule at the Edwin Watts/Palmetto Dunes Intercollegiate in Charleston, S.C. The event will be hosted by the College of Charleston, the same school that hosted the Cougar Classic back in September, which the Irish won by one stroke over Furman.
– ND –
FINAL TEAM RESULTS (54-hole totals): 1. Baylor 888 (298-292-298); 2. Missouri 889 (294-303-292); 3. Kansas State 900 (305-291-304); 4. Denver 904 (304-300-300); 5. NOTRE DAME 908 (303-304-301); 6. (tie) Nebraska 911 (302-302-307) and James Madison 911 (306-302-303); 8. Iowa State 929 (307-309-313); 9. (tie) Eastern Michigan 931 (316-307-308) and Arkansas-Little Rock 931 (303-315-313); 11. Oral Roberts 934 (318-312-304); 12. Toledo 946 (316-322-308); 13. William & Mary 959 (322-324-313); 14. Dartmouth 1000 (344-330-326).
TOP 11 INDIVIDUALS (of 86): 1. Josefin Svenningsson (Baylor) 210 (69-71-70); 2. Christine Boucher (Kansas State) 216 (74-71-71); 3. Emily Hoeper (Denver) 219 (71-72-76); 4. Michaelyn Morgan (Baylor) 220 (72-73-75); 5. (tie) Carol Green (James Madison) 221 (74-73-74), Helene Robert (Kansas State) 221 (75-72-74) and Chrissie McArdle (Nebraska) 221 (75-74-72); 8. (tie) Candice Satow (Oral Roberts) 222 (74-76-72) and Kelli Strubinger (Missouri) 222 (72-77-73); 10. (tie) Linda Svensson (UALR) 223 (71-77-75) and Mindy Bullard (Missouri) 223 (74-75-74).
NOTRE DAME INDIVIDUALS (of 86): 12. (tie) Noriko Nakazaki 224 (75-74-75); 16. (tie) Stacy Brown* 226 (76-75-75); 20. (tie) Karen Lotta* 228 (76-77-75); 27. (tie) Katie Brophy 231 (77-77-77); 31. Lauren Gebauer 232 (80-72-80); 33. (tie) Shannon Byrne 234 (75-81-78) and Suzie Hayes 234 (76-83-75); 38. (tie) Sarah Bassett 235 (78-83-74).
* – indicates players competing as individuals; scores not counted toward team total