Carolina Golfers Improve to Third at Tar Heel Invitational

Saturday, October 8

Chapel Hill, N.C.

TBA

North Carolina

Tar Heel Invitational

Women Golfers Grab Lead At Cougar Classic

October 8, 2011 | Women's Golf

By: UNC Athletic Communications

Oct. 8, 2011

2nd Round Results

| Final Round Pairings

Chapel Hill, N.C. - The University of North Carolina women's golf team finished the second round of the Tar Heel Invitational in 3rd place, moving up from 6th. The Tar Heels shot a 2-under par 286 for the day to put them at an overall score of 576 heading into the final day of play Sunday. LSU moved up the team leaderboard to finish the day tied with Alabama at first at a 7-under 569.

"The team played better overall," said North Carolina head coach Jan Mann. "We still didn't make a lot of putts but I'm very confident in our ball striking and if the putts drop tomorrow then I think we can definitely move up the leaderboard."

Sophomore Casey Grice, from College Station, Tex., leads the way for the Tar Heels, shooting a 3-under-par 69 to finish the day tied for eighth at 141. Jackie Chang, a sophomore from Paradise Valley, Ariz., remained even par with a 72 for a tie at 14th. Senior Allie White had a solid day, shooting an even par 72 for a 145 total and a tie at 17th. Katherine Perry, from Cary, N.C., shot a 3-over 75 to finished tied at 39th with a 148. Catherine O'Donnell, a senior from Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., bounced back on the second day of play with a 1-over 73 to finish at 149 in a tie for 43rd.

"Casey [Grice] hit the ball wonderful today. Yesterday, she hit 18 greens in regulation and just didn't make putts at all, so we worked last night on her putting and got her on a smoother stroke so some of those putts dropped today," said Mann. "We have got to play the golf course, we can't worry about what anybody else is doing. We need to stay focused on the process of hitting each shot and stay confident. If they do that, I think they will see some good results"

Junior Courtney Gunter, playing as an individual, shot an even par 72 to finish at 1-over 145 for the two rounds. Freshman Maia Schechter and junior Michelle Ahn, also individuals, shot a 76 and 85, respectively. Schechter is tied for 74th and Ahn, 95th.

Hannah Collier from Alabama shot a scorching 6-under-par 66 to take first place through two rounds. Collier's 66 ties for the second lowest round at the Tar Heel Invitational; she stands at a 9-under 135 total. Carolina Powers of Michigan State, is just two off the lead in second, shooting a 4-under 68 for the day to finish at a 7-under 137. Madelene Sagstrom of LSU is now third overall, shooting a 2-under 70 in the second round. Augusta James of NC State, Brooke Pancake of Alabama, Marta Sanz of Auburn and Cheyenne Woods of Wake Forest are tied for fourth at a 5-under-par 139.

Alabama and LSU are tied for first heading into the final round with Alabama shooting an even par 288 and LSU a 3-under 285 for the day. North Carolina moved up to third place by shooting a 2-under 286 for the day and finishing the second round at 576 overall. Auburn is in fourth at a 1-over 577 and NC State fifth at a 4-over 580.

LSU head coach Karen Bahnsen said, "We kinda lost our momentum because I thought we were making some really great headways. They fought really hard until the end and came up with three birdies on the last hole and that was huge. They didn't let the frustration of letting a few get away get to them. Again, it's a tribute to my team that they fight all the way to the end, that's what it takes."

Mic Potter, head coach of Alabama, commented on his team's play. "It was a little inconsistent today. Sometimes you can make a bunch of birdies and make up for your mistakes but at the same time you have to say, 'well we have to get some of these players going if we are going to pull away.' There is a lot of golf left so we have to get better this afternoon and be ready to go tomorrow."

The final round will be played Sunday, Oct. 9, at UNC Finley Golf Course in Chapel Hill. The shotgun round starts at 9:15 a.m. at the par 72, 6,285-yard course. Admission is free and the public is invited to attend.