Two days into the final leg of its quest for an unprecedented fourth national championship, top-seeded Duke finished in 12th place Wednesday, 15 strokes behind co-leaders USC and UCLA at the University of New Mexico Golf Course in Albuquerque, N.M. The Blue Devils were in 18th place after Tuesday, also 15 strokes off the pace.
On Wednesday, though, nasty weather managed to overwhelm the championship.
Duke's second round exceeded eight hours as the golfers battled heavy gusts of wind in a round that was suspended twice before it was finally postponed for the day.
At the first break, Duke went into the clubhouse at 16-over. After finishing its five holes in the high winds, Duke dropped seven strokes to finish the second day at 23-over.
The winds caused both suspensions, and only 13 of 24 teams finished their round.
"It was a heck of a windy day," head coach Dan Brooks said. "What can you say? It was really, really tough conditions. I have to hand it to my team. They fought really hard and played in some tough stuff."
Top-seeded golfer Amanda Blumenherst fired a 1-under 71 to bring her to 1-over after two days. Blumenherst dropped two strokes in the last five holes.
She was followed on the day by freshman Kim Donovan, who carded a 2-over 74 to bring her to 7-over for the two-day total. Senior Jennifer Pandolfi is 8-over, and junior Jennie Lee is 9-over.
The Blue Devils return to the links Thursday at 12:30 p.m.
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