Idaho shoots better score each round to take sixth at Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown
The Idaho women’s golf team shot its best round of the Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown Tuesday to wrap up a sixth place finish in Boulder City, Nevada.
The Vandals entered Tuesday in sixth place and their third-round 290 helped them keep that position out of the 18 teams competing. The Vandals shot an 18-over-par 882 for the tournament with round scores of 301, 291 and 290.
“It was a really strong performance,” Idaho coach Lisa Johnson said. “We beat several teams ranked ahead of us.”
The tournament was Idaho’s last tournament of the fall season. It will tee off again at the Texas State Delta Gamma Challenge Feb. 15 and 16 in San Marcos, Texas.
Senior Kaitlyn Oster shot the best score for Idaho with a 3-over-par 219 to tie for 15th. Oster shot a 1-under-par 71 in the second and third rounds — the only Vandal to shoot under par in those rounds.
“This golf course sets up very well for her game,” Johnson said of Oster.
Junior Kristin Strankman finished tied for 22nd by shooting a 4-over-par 220. She finished the first round with a 2-under-par 70.
Sophomore Amy Hasenoehrl finished one stroke behind Strankman with a 5-over-par 221 to tie for 25th. She shot a 1-over-par 73 in the second and third rounds.
Senior Leilanie Kim shot a 7-over-par 79 in the first round but responded with even-par 72 scores in the second and third rounds. Kim finished with a 7-over-par 223 to tie for 36th.
Freshman Kendall Gray tied for 76th by shooting a 15-over-par 231. She improved each round with scores of 82, 75 and 74.
Johnson said putting struggles and strong winds contributed to Idaho’s poor scores in the first round of the tournament on Sunday.
“We played well all three days,” Johnson said. “We just didn’t putt very well the first day. We managed our game well … We just struggled on the greens the first day relative to the last two days.”
Minnesota and San Diego State tied for the title. Each shot a 1-under-par 863 for the tournament. Minnesota finished strong by firing the low-round scores in the second and third round.
Host UNLV finished third by shooting a 4-over-par 868.
UNLV’s Dana Finkelstein took home individual honors firing a 9-under-par 207. She shot a 7-under-par 65 in the third round, the lowest score for that round.
San Diego State’s Haleigh Krause shot a 6-under-par 210 for second place and Minnesota’s Celia Kuenster shot a 4-under-par 212, including 4-under-par 68 in the last two rounds, to finish third.
Garrett Cabeza can be reached at [email protected]