Golfweek

It was a speech UNC Wilmington coach Cindy Ho knew she had to make, but didn’t want to.

After a fall season in which the Seahawks finished no worse than seventh in their four events, the team entered the Colonial Athletic Association Championship in a slump, finishing 16th twice during the spring and sitting squarely on the postseason bubble. Ranked outside the top 50 in the country, Ho knew her squad’s only sure shot at advancing to regionals was to win the conference tournament. But finding the right way to tell her team without adding undue pressure sent Ho’s own stress level skyrocketing.

“I was having to rehearse (the speech) in my head,” Ho said. “I didn’t want to freak ourselves out.”

Ho delivered her message, and the Seahawks delivered the results. With a final-round 2-over 290 April 20, UNC Wilmington beat Georgia State by two shots to win its second consecutive CAA title. The team will find out April 28 which regional they’ll be playing May 8-10.

“They were ready for the challenge,” Ho said.

The Seahawks’ celebration didn’t immediately happen after the final putts were holed. Sophomore Ashley Tait (pictured), who was playing in the final group and held a four-shot lead with four holes to play, bogeyed three holes coming in. Meanwhile, Cathrine Madsen, a Georgia State sophomore, birdied her last three holes.

“I needed some Pepto-Bismol at that point,” Ho said.

Tait was too overcome with emotion after making a 5-foot bogey putt on No. 18 to tell her teammates her score. It wasn’t until Tait’s and Madsen’s scorecards were signed – almost 10 minutes after the final putts were holed – that UNC Wilmington knew it had won.

“There were a few minutes when I was really upset,” said Tait, who shot 70 and finished second behind Madsen at 4-under 212. “But it really didn’t take me long to get over it. The most important thing is getting the team to regionals. (My teammates) cheered me up instantly.”

Four Seahawks finished in the top 10, including senior Emily Klein, who followed a second-round 79 with a career-best 68 in the final round.

UNC Wilmington will take the same five players to regionals as it did last year. Ho admits that “a lot of good things will have to happen” in order to advance to the NCAA Championship. But the Seahawks feel they’ve snapped out of their slow spring start and will enter regionals with a fresh perspective after a needed victory.

“We just did it,” Ho said. “Why can’t we do it again?”

ROUND OF HER LIFE: Portland State freshman Aubrey Vaughn did something at the Big Sky Conference Championship she’d never done in her brief college career: Break 80.

Vaughn shot a second-round 72 April 21 to help the Vikings win the conference title by two shots over Northern Arizona and by three over favorite Eastern Washington. Vaughn, whose scoring average on the year is 82.93, finished with a personal-best 239. Also finishing with career scores were Hannah Brews, who birdied her final hole to win the event with a final-round 72, and Alexia Brown, who finished ninth at 229.

Portland State entered the conference tournament No. 142 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings with no victories against the country’s top 100 teams. Now the Vikings are headed to regionals for the first time since 2005.

SENIOR SENDOFF: Fresno State won its first tournament of the year at the right time.

The Bulldogs erased a seven-stroke deficit on the final day at the WAC Championship to win the event for the first time in the program’s four-year history. Senior Laura Luethke, the program’s first recruit, won the individual title for her fifth career victory.

“She deserves it more than anybody (after) helping build this program from the ground up,” coach Angie Cates said.

All five Bulldogs finished in the top 20, including Taylor Siebert and Hali Coppin, who tied for ninth.

ONE-STOP SHOP: Click here for complete coverage of all conference championships

Five questions with . . .


Arizona senior Alison Walshe, No. 6 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings.

1. I heard you’re pretty superstitious. What types of things do you do?

“It would take me forever to tell you. It goes from number of tees in my pocket, to the way I start my day, to what I do when I see certain coins. It could go on forever. The big one is that I can’t write my score or the person I’m keeping score for until I make a birdie.”

2. You played in the Kraft Nabisco Championship earlier this month. What was the best part of the experience?

“It was just awesome to be there and to see how spoiled everyone is there. The food was the best part. In the Kraft tent, there was ice cream and food. In the locker room, there was a buffet every day. It was great. I’m still pretty star-struck, even with the younger players too. I was like, ‘Oh my God, there’s Paula Creamer.’ I’m still a total fan. The tour players were so amazing. They made a point to come up, knowing you were an amateur, and introduce themselves and wish you luck. That was really cool.”

3. I know you’re a big Boston sports fan, so if you could only go to one game, would you choose to see the Boston Celtics, Boston Red Sox or New England Patriots?

“A Sox game. I love them all equally, so I don’t want to pick favorites, but I think the whole environment of  Red Sox games is just awesome. Just being outdoors in the summer, the fans are awesome. I usually wear my shamrock Sox hat.”

4. You were born in Ireland. What’s the best thing about the country no one knows about?

“There are these 99-cent ice cream cones that they have everywhere. They’re awesome. If I’m on vacation, I go all out. I’ll have a couple a day.”

5. Your coach describes you as very competitive and says you sometimes have a temper on the course. Besides golf, what else are you intense about?

“I’m an extremely competitive person. I definitely get intense on the golf course. But I’m intense in anything. My roommate rags on me because when we play Guitar Hero, I get really into it. If I’m not winning, I get really hot-headed.”

(For more with Alison Walshe, check out Lance Ringler’s “Off Campus.”)

A look ahead

What: Big Ten Women’s Championship, April 25-27, Penn State Golf Course (Blue), State College, Penn.

Why it’s important: Should be a great battle between No. 6 Purdue and defending champion and No. 16 Michigan State. Spartans senior Sara Brown won her third title of the year at the Lady Buckeye Invitational April 20. The Boilermakers are coming off a 42-shot victory at the Indiana Invitational, where freshman Junthima Gulyanamitta won her first college title.

• • •

What: Big 12 Women’s Championship, April 25-27, Karsten Creek Golf Course, Stillwater, Okla.

Why it’s important: Texas A&M stormed from behind to win last year’s championship with a final-round 296. The 22nd-ranked Aggies will have their hands full in defending the title with host and ninth-ranked Oklahoma State and 23rd-ranked Texas applying pressure.



Posted: 4/25/2008

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