Hurricane season is finally here!
But neither Hurricane Gordon nor the defending national champion and top-ranked Arizona could prevent the second-ranked Duke women's golf team from winning their second consecutive NCAA Fall Preview and notching their first victory of the season.
The Blue Devils shot a two-day total of 595, 11-over par, to capture the weather shortened event by three strokes over the Wildcats and six strokes over 13th-ranked Tennessee.
"We are out to win every tournament we play," coach Dan Brooks said. "If we stay positive and rebound well from bad shots then the outcome will decide itself."
The strong 21-team field, which included 11 of the top 15 teams in the country, competed at Mission Inn's El Campeon course in Howey-In-The-Hills, Fla. The hilly par-73 course had some long par 4's, but it was the grainy Bermuda greens that made the course more difficult.
"The greens on the course are so unique because they are grainy," Brooks said. "Most of the greens are undulated so you either have really fast downhill putts or really slow uphill putts."
Duke was led by sophomore Kristina Engstrom and freshman Virada Nirapathpongporn, both of whom fired rounds of 75-73, finishing in a tie for fourth at 2-over par. The Wake Forest duo of Marta Prieto and Maria Beautell won individual honors with a two-day total of 146, even-par.
After firing a first round one-under par 72, good for a tie for third, freshman Leigh Anne Hardin had a tough second day shooting a 79 to finish tied for 17th at five-over par.
"Leigh Anne and Virada are handling [their first college tournament] very well," Brooks said. "They are very seasoned players, are used to traveling around, and have been on the road a great deal the last few years. Both are very organized and have adjusted to college life well."
Senior Kalen Anderson recovered from her first round 78 by shooting a second round 74 to finish in a tie for 22nd. Anderson's 74 was a very important part of Duke's victory since both junior Candy Hannemann and Hardin struggled on day two.
Hannemann had a difficult second day, shooting a 7-over par 80 to finish in a tie for 34th. Hannemann, however, led the way for the Blue Devils on the first day, playing the final nine holes at 4-under par. This great display of golf included a hole-in-one of the par-3 second hole, the third of her career.
"We did alright for our first tournament, but there is certainly room for improvement," Anderson said. "However, it's nice to get off to a good start."
After starting on the back nine Friday, the Blue Devils struggled early, shooting a 160, but with Hannemann's help Duke rebounded with a 136 on the front side-good for a two-stroke lead over Arizona.
"One of the keys to our success is our consistency," Brooks said. "All five of our golfers shot within six strokes of each other and everyone contributed at least one score to our total. It was a good team effort."
While Hurricane Gordon and its expected 7-10 inches of rain forced the NCAA to cancel the final round of the tournament, the weather was not much of a factor in the first round and most of the second.
"The second round rain delay did not effect us a whole lot," Anderson said. "We were surprised that we were sent back out, but we had no trouble getting back into the swing of things.
"There was a little redemption winning this tournament after our poor performance at the NCAAs this summer, but we really weren't thinking about this tournament in that way."
The Blue Devils will next travel down Tobacco Road for the Tar Heel Invitational Oct. 6-8 at the Finley Golf Course in Chapel Hill, N.C.
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