Senior Noriko Nakazaki captured her fourth top-10 finish of the season by placing in a tie for sixth at the Betsy Rawls Longhorn Invitational.

Irish Register Eighth-Place Finish At Betsy Rawls Longhorn Invitational

March 18, 2007

AUSTIN, Texas – Senior co-captain Noriko Nakazaki (Hanover Park, Ill./Hoffman Estates) carded a one-over par 73 on Sunday to pace the Notre Dame women’s golf team during the third and final round of the Betsy Rawls Longhorn Invitational. Nakazaki finished in a two-way tie for sixth with a 223 (75-75-73) total at the par-72 University of Texas Golf Club. The Irish saved their best round for last with a 20-over par 308 to finish in eighth place with a 937 (314-315-308).

No. 18 Purdue shot a tournament-best round of 292 (+4) on Sunday to make up an eight-stroke deficit and win the team title. TCU and Baylor rounded out the top three with respective scores of 918 and 921. Texas, the host school for the event, began the day with an eight-stroke lead yet carded a 318 on Sunday and finished in a tie for fifth among the 15-team field.

Maria Hernandez made it a sweep for the Boilermakers as she captured medalist honors with a 54-hole total of 217 (77-70-70) to finish one shot ahead of Arkansas’ Stacy Lewis. Kelley Louth from Texas entered the third round with a seven-shot lead before carding a nine-over par 81 to finish fourth with a 221 (69-71-81).

Freshman Annie Brophy (Spokane, Wash./Gonzaga Prep) made it two Irish golfers in the top 20 among the field of 86 as she recorded a three-round score of 233 (78-79-76) to finish in a tie for 20th. That marked Brophy’s top 54-hole score and placing of the season. Her classmate Julie Kim (Bayside, N.Y./Bayside) rebounded back from back-to-back rounds of 82 to post a five-over par 77 on Sunday to finish with a 241 and in a tie for 48th.

Fellow freshman Kristin Wetzel (Middletown, N.Y./Hilton Head Prep) concluded the event with a 242 (80-79-83) and in a tie for 54th, while sophomore Lisa Maunu (St. Thomas, Ontario/Collegiate Parkside Institute) rounded out the Irish lineup with a 245 (81-82-82) and tied for 61st overall.

Notre Dame returns to action at the Indiana Invitational Hosted by Crooked Stick on April 9-10 in Indianapolis, Ind. For additional information, log on to und.com or call the Notre Dame athletics hotline at (574) 631-3000.

Betsy Rawls Longhorn Invitational
(The University of Texas Golf Club – Austin, Texas. Par 72, 6,290-yards)

Team Scores (Final 54-hole totals): 1. Purdue 907 (307-308-292), 2. TCU 918 (306-309-303), 3. Baylor 921 (317-306-298), 4. Arkansas 923 (306-309-308), 5t. SMU 925 (313-308-304), 5t. Texas 925 (303-304-318), 7. Oklahoma 934 (316-306-312), 8. Notre Dame 937 (314-315-308), 9. Nebraska 938 (315-307-316), 10. Iowa State 940 (314-304-322), 11. Kansas 943 (323-309-311), 12. Texas (B) 953 (323-317-313), 13. Iowa 957 (314-324-319), 14. Penn State 971 (316-322-333), 15. Minnesota 974 (328-326-320)

Top-5 Golfers (out of 86) (Final 54-hole totals): 1. Maria Hernandez (Purdue) 217 (77-70-70), 2. Stacy Lewis (Arkansas) 218 (76-72-70), 3. Hannah Burke (Baylor) 220 (74-73-73), 4. Kelley Louth (Texas) 221 (69-71-81), 5. Kate Ackerson (SMU) 222 (78-73-71)

Notre Dame Scores (Final 54-hole totals): 6t. Noriko Nakazaki 223 (75-75-73), 20t. Annie Brophy 233(78-79-76), 48t. Julie Kim 241 (82-82-77), 54t. Kristin Wetzel 242 (80-79-83), 61t. Lisa Maunu 245(81-82-82)