Little Fires a 5-Under 67 in NCAA Finale

Friday, May 21

Wilmington, N.C.

All Day

University of Oregon

1218

Country Club of Landfall

Kendra Little, Oregon Women's Golf - 2010 NCAA Championships, Landfall CC

05/22/10 | Women's Golf

By: GoDucks.com

*Final results are available in the LINKS box to the right, updated season/career stats are available via the link above, and Golfstat.com hole-by-hole results are available by clicking here.

WILMINGTON, N.C. - University of Oregon junior Kendra Little saved her best for last Friday and shot a five-under 67 in the NCAA Women's Golf Championships final round at the Landfall Country Club.

The Eugene, Ore., native tied her career best, and also tied the fourth-lowest score of the tournament's 504 rounds played.

Her score Friday paced UO for the 15th time in her 35 rounds this season (and 42nd time overall in her career), not to mention stood as her eighth under-par round this season and 20th in her career.

Friday's five-under score tied her 67 career best from the 2008 UNLV Spring Rebel Invitational that ranks second-best all-time for UO, and was two shy of the school record - a seven-under 65 by Cathryn Bristow in the 2008 Indiana Invitational.

Also on the par 72, 6,368-yard course Friday, junior Erica Omlid posted a 75 final round and tied her best score of the tourney, sophomore Ashley Edwards and Cheyenne Hickle added 76's, and senior Kate Hildahl closed her collegiate career with an 81.

In the overall standings, Hickle paced UO for the fourth straight day (57th-tie, 71-73-79-76-299), and in the overall standings for the third time among her 11 collegiate events.

The Gilbert, Ariz., native was followed by Little (86th-t, 79-78-80-67-304), Omlid (104th-t, 80-78-75-75-308), Edwards (104th-73-80-79-76) and Hildahl (122nd, 79-82-80-81-322).

As a team, UO improved a place into a tie for 23rd place (302-309-313-294-1218) thanks to its 294 score Friday – its best of the tourney by eight strokes. That four-person score was also only two off its best of the 2009-10 campaign (292) that it shot in the first round of both the Pac-10 Championships and Turtle Bay Collegiate Invitational.

Under the guidance of first-year head coach Ria Quiazon, the Ducks' appearance in the UNC Wilmington-event marked its first NCAA trip since 2000, and seventh in school history, with the previous six in an eight-year window from 1993-2000 (1993 – 17th; 1994 – 14th; 1995 – 13th; 1997 – 7th; 1998 – 14th; 2000 – 11th).

Overall in the team results Friday, No. 8 Purdue (284-294-280-295-1153) entered the day with an eight-stroke and held on to win by one stroke over No. 4 USC (second, 282-288-295-289-1154).

No. 7 Alabama held onto third place (289-288-294-286-1157) and stood four strokes ahead of No. 5 Arizona State (fourth, 288-293-290-290-1161).

The top 10 was rounded out by No. 6 Arizona (fifth, 296-286-293-291-1166), No. 1 UCLA (sixth, 288-292-302-287-1169), No. 16 Vanderbilt (seventh, 296-292-291-291-1170), No. 2 Duke (eighth-tie, 288-303-300-288-1179), No. 25 Oklahoma State (eighth-tie, 295-294-296-294-1179) and No. 23 Florida State (10th, 289-302-294-297-1182).

On the individual leaderboard, Arizona State's Jennifer Johnson (second, 67-70-70-73-280) lost the lead for the first time when Oklahoma State's Caroline Hedwall shot a 68 Friday to win by four strokes (70-70-68-68-276).

Purdue's Maude-Aimee LeBlanc (67-73-70-71) and Auburn's Cydney Clanton (72-71-72-66) followed in a tie for fourth place. LSU individual Megan McChrystal shot a tourney-low 64 Friday to move into a tie for fifth place (72-71-76-64-283) with USC's Jennifer Song (67-71-72-73-283).

Looking back over the season, UO's postseason trip to Wilmington capped an impressive stretch run. The Ducks scored their second-highest regional finish ever in the NCAA Central Regional (sixth-tie) and five places better than their pre-meet seeding. In mid-April in Eugene, Little's (72-75-72-219) and the team's third-place finishes were UO's best-ever in the Pacific-10 Conference Championships. In return for those efforts, Oregon was tabbed 28th and 32nd this week in the Golfstat and Golfweek national polls – its season high in both editions.

FOURTH ROUND FINAL RESULTS

29th Annual NCAA Women's Golf Championships
Dye Course – Par 72, 6,368 yards
Wilmington, N.C. (Host: UNC Wilmington)
Friday, May 21, 2010

TEAM RESULTS – 1, Purdue, 284-294-280-295-1153. 2, USC, 282-288-295-289-1154. 3, Alabama, 289-288-294-286-1157. 4, Arizona State, 288-293-290-290-111. 5, Arizona, 296-286-293-391-1166. 6, UCLA, 288-292-302-287-1169. 7, Vanderbilt, 296-292-291-291-1170. 8t, Duke, 288-303-300-288-1179. 8t, Oklahoma State, 295-294-296-294-1179. 10, Florida State, 289-302-294-297-1182. 11t, Auburn, 293-296-295-299-1183. 11t, Texas A&M, 297-302-286-298-1183. 13, Virginia, 294-291-307-292-1184. 14t, South Carolina, 300-297-293-296-1186. 14t, Pepperdine, 297-306-288-295-1186. 16t, New Mexico, 303-296-295-295-1189. 16t, Texas, 299-296-300-294-1189. 18, Tulane, 311-292-297-293-1193. 19t, TCU, 292-308-295-304-1199. 19t, Tennessee, 297-307-300-295-1199. 19t, Stanford, 300-307-302-290-1199. 22, Kent State, 307-305-297-291-1200. 23t, Oregon, 302-309-313-294-1218. 23t, San Jose State, 298-310-313-297-1218.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS – 1, Caroline Hedwall, Oklahoma State, 70-70-68-68-276. 2, Jennifer Johnson, Arizona State, 67-70-70-73-280. 3t, Maude-Aimee LeBlanc, Purdue, 67-73-70-71-281. 3t, Cydney Clanton, Auburn, 72-71-72-66-281. 5t, Megan mcChrystal, LSU, 72-71-76-64-283. 5t, Jennifer Song, USC, 67-71-72-73-283. 7t, Jennifer Kirby, Alabama, 75-70-70-69-284. 7, Margarita Ramos, Arizona, 71-69-74-70-284. 9t, Sally Watson, Stanford, 73-71-76-66-286. 9t, Katie Burnett, South Carolina, 72-74-69-71-286.

OREGON INDIVIDUAL RESULTS – 57t, Cheyenne Hickle, 71-73-79-76-299. 86t, Kendra Little, 79-78-80-67-304. 104t, Erica Omlid, 80-78-75-75-308. 104t, Ashley Edwards, 73-80-79-76-308. 122, Kate Hildahl, 79-82-80-81-322.

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