The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Indiana Invitational
Vandermade tied for lead at Indiana Invitational
04.06.2009 | Women's Golf
April 6, 2009
COLUMBUS, Ind. -- University of Texas freshman Nicole Vandermade (76-73) carded a 36-hole score of 5-over-par 149 at the Indiana Invitational to finish the day with a share of the lead. Vandermade led the third-place Longhorns (323-312=635, +59) as they fought sub-35 degree temperatures and winter-like conditions that included rain, sleet, hail and snow throughout the day.
Vandermade shaved three strokes off of her morning round with a second-round 1-over 73 on the 6,179-yard Otter Creek Golf Club. She made the turn at 2-over with bogeys on the sixth and seventh holes before finding her only birdie of the afternoon on the 17th hole. Her birdie putt on the 18th hole - which would have given her sole possession of the lead - lipped out.
Vandermade's morning round included four bogeys through her first six holes during what was considered to be the toughest conditions of the day by many players. She found a rhythm on the back nine after bogeying the 10th hole and playing her remaining eight holes at 1-under with a birdie on 14. Vandermade was tied for third place with a first-round 4-over 76.
Senior Kelley Louth (80-73=153) also carded a 73 in the second round along with Vandermade for the low individual rounds of the day. Louth is in fourth place at 9-over 153.
Junior Shannon Fish (80-83=163) is tied for 33rd at 19-over 163. Seniors Kristin Walla (87-83=170) and Caney Hines (87-84=171) round out the Longhorns squad and are tied for 58th and 61st places, respectively. Junior Alex Richards (85-84=169) is competing as an individual and is tied for 56th place.
Par was out of reach for all student-athletes in both the first and second rounds, as the average scores were 84.27 and 81.32, respectively.
UNLV (317-309) leads the 14-team field at 50-over 626. Iowa State (323-310) is second on the team leaderboard at 57-over 633, while Texas, Michigan (332-303) and Iowa (322-313) are tied for third at 59-over 635. Vandermade shares the individual lead with UNLV's Natasha Krishna (75-74).
Tuesday's final round of the Indiana Invitational will commence at 8 a.m. Central (9 a.m. ET) in a shotgun format.
TEXAS
T1. Nicole Vandermade, 76-73=149 (+5)
4. Kelley Louth, 80-73=153 (+9)
T33. Shannon Fish, 80-83=163 (+19)
T58. Kristin Walla, 87-83=170 (+26)
T61. Caney Hines, 87-84=171 (+27)
T64. Nicole Vandermade, 79 (+7)
TEXAS INDIVIDUALS
T56. Alex Richards, 85-84=169 (+25)
TEAM STANDINGS
1. UNLV, 317-309=626 (+50)
2. Iowa State, 323-310=633 (+57)
T3. TEXAS, 323-312=635 (+59)
T3. Michigan, 332-303=635 (+59)
T3. Iowa, 322-313=635 (+59)
T6. Indiana, 320-318=638 (+62)
T6. Wisconsin, 320-318=638 (+62)
8. Minnesota, 332-311=643 (+67)
9. Illinois, 328-316=644 (+68)
10. Illinois State, 326-320=646 (+70)
11. Ball State, 326-325=651 (+75)
12. Western Michigan, 349-325=674 (+98)
13. Lipscomb, 353-332=685 (+109)
14. Marshall, 344-347=691 (+115)
TOP FOUR PLAYERS
T1. Nicole Vandermade, TEXAS: 76-73=149 (+5)
T1. Natasha Krishna, UNLV: 75-74=149 (+5)
3. Elise Swartout, Western Michigan: 74-76=150 (+6)
4. Kelley Louth, TEXAS: 80-73=153 (+9)
POST-ROUND QUOTES
Head Coach Martha Richards
On the team's overall performance: I told the team this morning that this was going to be a long day and we were going to run into a lot of different conditions. This was a marathon kind of day, where you just have to stay patient, stay the course, and stay in the moment for each shot. In these kinds of conditions, if you're struggling, others are struggling, too. We were out on the course for almost 11 hours in incredibly difficult conditions, and I think we did a really nice job of doing what we needed to do despite Mother Nature.
On the play of freshman Nicole Vandermade: Nicole was outstanding today. She's from Canada, so she doesn't mind playing in this weather - she's used to it. Like most good players, she likes the bad weather because it separates the field. The best players, in difficult conditions, tend to rise to the occasion, and I think she played very, very well, especially in the second round. She's a tough kid - our 'blue collar' kid who just does what it takes.
Freshman Nicole Vandermade
On her performance: I haven't played in these types of conditions for over a year. It took me about the first six holes to adapt, and then after that, I kind of figured out what the ball was doing in the cold weather and how the wind was affecting it. I was just able to dial in after the first few holes.
