05/22/2009 - Duke Sports Information

OWINGS MILLS, Md. – The Duke women’s golf team continued what it did for the first three days at the NCAA Championship as the Blue Devils made their way up the leaderboard to finish sixth overall with a 72-hole total of 1207, while senior Amanda Blumenherst was tied for fourth, individually at the 6,443-yard, Par 72 Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Md.

Taking home the team title was Arizona State, who fired a team-best 291 for the second straight day to win by eight shots over UCLA.   The Sun Devils finished with a four-day total of 1182, while UCLA (1190), Southern California (1191), Oklahoma State (1199), Denver (1206), Duke (1207), North Carolina (1210), Virginia (1212), Pepperdine (1213) and Purdue (1216) rounded out the top 10.

“As a fun goal for today, I really wanted to take a trophy home,” said Duke Head Coach Dan Brooks.  “When I reflect on what they did in this tournament and what kind of season we have had -- to finish sixth, that was a tournament success.  I am proud of each individual for stepping up and playing the best golf of our season at the very end.  There is a lot to be said about that.”

As a team, the Blue Devils posted rounds of 308, 301, 302 and 296 over the four days.  Duke collected 11 birdies on Friday, after notching six on day one, eight on day two and 10 in the third round.  For the third consecutive day, Duke opened action off the 10th tee box.  Duke’s top 10 finish in the NCAA Championship is the 15th in school history, while Brooks has notched 12 top six placements over his 25 years.

A product of Scottsdale, Ariz., Blumenherst closes out her spectacular career with a tied for fourth place finish with rounds of 75, 73, 74 and 71 for a total of 293.  The senior turned in five birdies on Friday as she hit a team-best 15 greens, 12 fairways and had 32 putts.  Her top 10 finish is the 36th of her career, while her under-par round was her 78th -- both are school records.

“I started feeling kind of like the sophomore and junior year Amanda,” commented Blumenherst on her stellar play.  “I was hitting the ball straight, which was great and a nice change.  I was also hitting most of the fairways, which makes golf a little bit easier.  I had a few putts fall in, which was good.  I would have liked to finish better, but a one-under par is not to shabby.”

For the second straight day, Blumenherst birdied the opening hole and was firing at the greens all afternoon.  She rolled in a 10-footer on No. 10, but gave a stroke back on the 13th hole as she suffered a three-putt bogey.  Blumenherst parred the next three holes before draining a seven-footer for birdie on the 454-yard, par five 17th to move back to one-under-par.  On the very next hole, she came up just short of the green and could not get up-and-down as she made the turn at even par, 36. 

“I feel like if this was a week tournament -- last year I totally felt like if it was a week-long tournament it would have been completely different,” said Blumenherst.  “Something amazing would have happened.  The same thing here.  I feel like we just keep getting momentum, keep building it up.  I think next year the three freshmen coming in are great players -- Jennie and I are sad to go but we have confidence in this team that the dynasty will keep going.”

On the final nine holes, Blumenherst caught fire as she birdied No. 1, No. 4 and No. 5 to move to three-under-par.  She rolled in a 15-footer on the first hole, 25-footer on No. 4 and a four-footer on the fifth hole.  Blumenherst had pars on the next two holes before closing with back-to-back bogeys on the eighth and ninth holes to finish with a one-under-par, 71.  Her top five finish marks the third straight year she has finished in the top five at the NCAA Championship.

“It was unbelievable -- just everything,” said Blumenherst on her career at Duke.  “Besides Duke parking, I cannot think of anything I would rather change at Duke.  The camaraderie on the team was unbelievable, even though it was different every year.  It prepared me so much on the golf course, in the classroom -- it was amazing how it prepared me for life after college.  Every experience, every little thing I will always treasure.”

Fellow senior Jennie Lee had her best round of the tournament as she closed with an even-par, 72.  A product of Henderson, Nev., finished with a four-day total of 300 with rounds of 78, 75, 75 and 72, which was tied for 25th.  She kicked off her round with five straight birdies and then moved to two-under-par with birdies on No. 15 and No. 17.  On the par three 15th, she hit her hybrid to within eight feet for birdie and then rolled in a five-footer for birdie on the 17th. 

Lee posted seven pars and two bogeys on the final nine to finish at even par.  She had a team-best 29 putts, while hitting 11 fairways and 11 greens on the afternoon.

“It was good,” said Lee about finishing strong.  “On hole one, I was so happy and I kept telling myself to enjoy the day.  It was great to make the turn at two-under but I unfortunately had a couple of bogeys.  It was a really good day all day and I was enjoying every minute of it.”

Junior Alison Whitaker had Duke’s best start of the day as she birdied the first two holes.  Whitaker, who is from Melbourne, Australia, hit her opening drive left into the trees and rough, but was able to hit her approach shot to within four feet for birdie.  On the very next hole, she hit a 9-iron to two feet for birdie.  Whitaker moved to three-under-par as she drained a 30-foot putt on No. 15, but suffered a double-bogey on the 16th hole to move back to one-under. 

Whitaker made the turn at even par after a bogey on No. 18 and then was three-over-par over the final nine holes to finish with a 75.  For the week, she tied for 39th with a total of 304, after notching rounds of 76, 75 78 and 75.  On Friday, she hit only seven fairways, 14 greens and had 33 putts.

Both sophomore Kim Donovan and junior Yu Young Lee each posted rounds of 78 on Friday.  Donovan, a product of Hopkinton, Mass., had a slow start for the first time this week as she was five-over-par through nine holes and never got her game going.  She had her lone birdie on the 377-yard, par four second hole as she almost holed out from 125 yards out before sinking a 15-footer.  On the day, Donovan hit eight fairways, nine greens and had 31 putts.  For the tournament, she tied for 66th with a 310.

Lee, who is out of Orlando, Fla., had her best round of the tournament as she notched six pars and three bogeys on both the front and back nine.  She hit 12 fairways, seven greens and had 31 putts on the final day of action.  Overall, Lee tied for 111th with a 324.

“I think we have done a great job,” commented Jennie Lee on Duke’s sixth place finish.  “We have had a lot of highs and lows throughout the whole year.  It is just so nice to be at the end of the year and we finished sixth at nationals.  That is so special.”

Duke graduates Blumenherst and Jennie Lee but return three letterwinners, while welcoming a solid recruiting class for 2009-2010.  The Blue Devil seniors led Duke to two NCAA Championships, three ACC Championships and 19 team titles over their career.

“That [great final rounds] gives you an idea of what they are made of,” commented Brooks on Blumenherst and Lee.  “They were both extremely emotional all day.  They are the quintessential student-athletes -- they took their school seriously, they took being on a team seriously, they were passionate with everything they did.  That is what defines those two -- is passion about being collegiate players.  They have set the bar really high of what it is like to be a Duke team member.  I think the rest of our team has been paying attention, I hope they have because they have had a lot to learn from these two.  And then to come in with all of the loss that is happening here because they don’t get to be college student-athletes anymore at Duke.  It is crushing for both of them; they have cried many times.  For them to both come in and shoot even and under par -- that just tells you who they are.”

Duke Results:
T4 Amanda Blumenherst (10)   Duke  +5  F  -1  75 73 74 71 293
T25 Jennie Lee (10)   Duke  +12  F  E  78 75 75 72 300
T39 Alison Whitaker (10)   Duke  +16  F  +3  76 75 78 75 304
T66 Kimberly Donovan (10)   Duke  +22  F  +6  79 78 75 78 310
T111 Yu Young Lee (10)   Duke  +36  F  +6  83 81 82 78 324

Duke Notes:

•  Amanda Blumenherst totaled 12 birdies over the tournament to rank tied for fourth, individually.

•  Jennie Lee had 48 pars, which was the tied for fifth highest number in the tournament.

•  The average score for the fourth round of the tournament was 76.71, while the entire four days average was 76.71.

•  Over the four rounds, senior Jennie Lee hit 47-of-56 fairways.  Over her final seven rounds of golf, she hit a total of 82 out of her last 95 fairways in the regionals and championship.

•  Duke played the spring season with only five golfers after freshman Mina Harigae turned professional.

•  Duke has won NCAA Championships in 1999, 2002, 2005, 2006 and 2007.

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1 2 3 4 Team Scores
T5 T4 2 1 Arizona State 302 298 291 291 1182 +30
2 1 3 2 UCLA 296 293 304 297 1190 +38
4 2 1 3 Southern California 301 295 294 301 1191 +39
T7 T4 7 4 Oklahoma State 303 297 309 290 1199 +47
1 3 5 5 Denver, Univ. of 294 304 309 299 1206 +54
14 12 8 6 Duke 308 301 302 296 1207 +55
3 T4 4 7 North Carolina 299 301 306 304 1210 +58
T9 T9 6 8 Virginia 305 302 301 304 1212 +60
T17 T13 9 9 Pepperdine 312 298 302 301 1213 +61
11 T9 T11 10 Purdue 306 301 311 298 1216 +64
T9 T9 T11 11 Alabama, U. of 305 302 311 299 1217 +65
T5 8 10 12 LSU 302 304 309 304 1219 +67
T12 T13 15 T13 Michigan State 307 303 315 300 1225 +73
T7 7 13 T13 Wake Forest 303 300 318 304 1225 +73
T21 T18 14 15 Georgia 316 307 301 310 1234 +82
15 15 18 16 Arizona 310 305 314 306 1235 +83
T12 17 16 17 Tennessee 307 313 306 311 1237 +85
T19 22 19 18 TCU 314 316 301 307 1238 +86
16 T20 20 19 New Mexico 311 314 307 310 1242 +90
T17 16 21 20 Tulane University 312 305 317 312 1246 +94
T21 T18 17 21 UT Chattanooga 316 307 305 320 1248 +96
23 24 T23 22 UC Irvine 320 316 312 301 1249 +97
T19 T20 22 23 Texas 314 311 313 314 1252 +100
24 23 T23 24 Ohio State 323 311 314 310 1258 +106

Start Finish Player Team Scores
T2 1 Maria Hernandez Purdue 74 72 72 71 289 +1
1 2 Jennifer Song Southern California 72 73 71 74 290 +2
T8 3 Pernilla Lindberg Oklahoma State 74 72 76 69 291 +3
T8 T4 Amanda Blumenherst Duke 75 73 74 71 293 +5
T5 T4 Azahara Munoz Arizona State 78 71 72 72 293 +5
T8 T6 Nannette Hill Wake Forest 72 71 79 72 294 +6
T8 T6 Calle Nielson Virginia 75 76 71 72 294 +6
4 T8 Alice Kim * UC Davis 74 75 70 76 295 +7
T2 T8 Maria Jose Uribe UCLA 75 66 77 77 295 +7
T5 10 Lisa McCloskey Pepperdine 74 69 78 75 296 +8
T31 T11 Cindy LaCrosse * Louisville, Univ. of 76 76 75 70 297 +9
T5 T11 Stephanie Connelly * UCF 72 74 75 76 297 +9
T8 T11 Stephanie Sherlock Denver, Univ. of 70 73 79 75 297 +9
T24 T11 Carlota Ciganda Arizona State 74 76 75 72 297 +9
T8 T11 Jaclyn Sweeney Arizona State 76 77 69 75 297 +9
T24 T16 Jane Chin UC Irvine 75 75 75 73 298 +10
T20 T16 Ginny Brown Tennessee 72 75 77 74 298 +10
T31 T16 Allie White North Carolina 78 76 73 71 298 +10
T15 T16 Lizette Salas Southern California 74 74 75 75 298 +10
T15 T16 Stephanie Kono UCLA 73 76 74 75 298 +10
T20 T21 Dawn Shockley Denver, Univ. of 77 70 77 75 299 +11
T8 T21 Sydney Crane North Carolina 75 72 75 77 299 +11
T20 T21 Jennifer Osborn Arizona State 75 74 75 75 299 +11
T15 T21 Belen Mozo Southern California 78 72 73 76 299 +11
T15 T25 Marta Silva Georgia 75 72 76 77 300 +12
T24 T25 Kathleen Ekey Alabama, U. of 75 78 72 75 300 +12
T28 T25 Caroline Martens LSU 78 74 74 74 300 +12
T28 T25 Tiffany Joh UCLA 74 76 76 74 300 +12
T34 T25 Jennie Lee Duke 78 75 75 72 300 +12
T15 T30 Rachel Raastad TCU 77 74 72 78 301 +13
T34 T30 Caroline Masson Oklahoma State 77 73 78 73 301 +13
T20 T32 Britney Choy New Mexico 73 79 72 78 302 +14
T74 T32 Brooke Pancake Alabama, U. of 75 78 81 68 302 +14
T34 T32 Megan McChrystal LSU 74 77 77 74 302 +14
T41 T32 Glory Yang UCLA 74 78 77 73 302 +14
T47 T32 Juliana Murcia Arizona State 77 77 76 72 302 +14
T74 T37 Marina Alex * Vanderbilt 79 81 74 69 303 +15
T47 T37 Caroline Hedwall Oklahoma State 76 78 76 73 303 +15
T41 T39 Jodi Ewart New Mexico 78 73 78 75 304 +16
T34 T39 Janine Fellows Tulane University 76 75 77 76 304 +16
T34 T39 Emma de Groot UT Chattanooga 79 73 76 76 304 +16
T34 T39 Lindsey Solberg Michigan State 73 79 76 76 304 +16
T47 T39 Katie Kempter Denver, Univ. of 74 81 75 74 304 +16
T34 T39 Camilla Lennarth Alabama, U. of 78 72 78 76 304 +16
T41 T39 Sydnee Michaels UCLA 75 75 79 75 304 +16
T57 T39 Jessica Wallace Pepperdine 79 77 76 72 304 +16
T41 T39 Alison Whitaker Duke 76 75 78 75 304 +16
T64 T48 Mallory Hetzel Georgia 77 76 80 72 305 +17
T47 T48 Laura Kueny Michigan State 74 76 80 75 305 +17
T41 T48 Nathalie Mansson Tennessee 81 77 71 76 305 +17
T24 T48 Lene Krog Virginia 78 74 73 80 305 +17
T54 T52 Kendall Dye * Oklahoma 82 73 76 75 306 +18
T41 T52 Catherine O'Donnell North Carolina 70 77 82 77 306 +18
T54 T54 Amanda Wilson Arizona 76 77 78 76 307 +19
T57 T54 Whitney Neuhauser Virginia 75 76 81 75 307 +19
T74 T54 Junthima Gulyanamitta Purdue 80 76 78 73 307 +19
T80 T57 Emma Jandel Ohio State 75 78 82 73 308 +20
T28 T57 Vicky Villanueva Ohio State 78 75 73 82 308 +20
T57 T57 Caroline Kim Southern California 77 76 79 76 308 +20
T64 T57 Karin Kinnerud Oklahoma State 78 74 81 75 308 +20
T57 T57 Taylore Karle Pepperdine 79 74 79 76 308 +20
T47 T57 Jayvie Agojo Pepperdine 80 78 72 78 308 +20
T64 T63 Isabelle Boineau Arizona 77 78 78 76 309 +21
T64 T63 Ellie Givens Denver, Univ. of 73 80 80 76 309 +21
T47 T63 Thea Hoffmeister Purdue 76 76 78 79 309 +21
T93 T66 Valentine Derrey TCU 78 83 76 73 310 +22
T57 T66 Kelley Louth Texas 81 77 74 78 310 +22
T31 T66 Maria Salinas UT Chattanooga 75 77 75 83 310 +22
T57 T66 Kimberly Donovan Duke 79 78 75 78 310 +22
T80 T70 Nicole Vandermade Texas 80 76 79 76 311 +23
T74 T70 Patty Chawalitmetha UC Irvine 78 80 76 77 311 +23
T87 T70 Michelle Bowles Michigan State 80 75 81 75 311 +23
T64 T70 Cheyenne Woods Wake Forest 78 76 79 78 311 +23
T54 T70 Kristen Simpson Virginia 77 76 78 80 311 +23
T87 T75 Rebecca Hellbom New Mexico 79 80 77 76 312 +24
T74 T75 Nikki Koller Arizona 79 73 82 78 312 +24
T57 T75 Carolina Andrade Georgia 82 79 71 80 312 +24
T93 T75 Jaqueline Hedwall LSU 74 80 83 75 312 +24
T80 T75 Joy Kim Virginia 79 77 79 77 312 +24
T64 T75 Kate Thomas North Carolina 76 77 80 79 312 +24
T64 T75 In-Ah Park Southern California 79 79 75 79 312 +24
T87 T82 Jean Chua Wake Forest 81 78 77 77 313 +25
T87 T82 Maude-Aimee LeBlanc Purdue 76 77 83 77 313 +25
T64 T82 Courtney Harter Alabama, U. of 77 74 82 80 313 +25
T64 T82 Amanda Johnson Oklahoma State 76 78 79 80 313 +25
T93 T86 Ashley McKenney Tulane University 78 76 83 77 314 +26
T102 T86 Sarah Faller Denver, Univ. of 78 83 78 75 314 +26
T47 T86 Tessa Teachman LSU 78 73 79 84 314 +26
T87 T86 Kaitlin Drolson Pepperdine 80 80 76 78 314 +26
T97 T90 Allyson Ferguson TCU 80 81 77 77 315 +27
T80 T90 Daniela Holmqvist Tulane University 77 76 82 80 315 +27
T97 T90 Margarita Ramos Arizona 78 77 83 77 315 +27
T97 T90 Alejandra Llaneza Arizona 83 79 76 77 315 +27
T97 T90 Natalie Sheary Wake Forest 80 75 83 77 315 +27
T74 T90 Moa Duf UT Chattanooga 79 79 76 81 315 +27
T93 T96 Brooke Beeler TCU 79 79 79 79 316 +28
T80 T96 Shannon Fish Texas 74 79 82 81 316 +28
T97 T96 Aimee Neff Michigan State 80 73 85 78 316 +28
T64 T96 Nicole Smith Tennessee 76 80 77 83 316 +28
T87 T96 Cathryn Bristow * Oregon, U. of 78 79 79 80 316 +28
T80 T96 Amalie Valle LSU 76 80 79 81 316 +28
T111 T102 Shannon Warner Michigan State 83 83 78 74 318 +30
105 T102 Diana Cantu Tennessee 78 81 81 78 318 +30
T102 T104 Kristin Walla Texas 82 79 78 80 319 +31
T102 T104 Linn Gustafsson Tulane University 81 82 76 80 319 +31
T80 T104 Lauren Hunt North Carolina 81 76 78 84 319 +31
T106 T107 Prisela Campbell TCU 83 82 76 79 320 +32
110 T107 Lalita Patipaksiri UC Irvine 80 82 80 78 320 +32
T118 109 Gemma Webster Ohio State 87 87 77 71 322 +34
T111 110 Samantha Troyanovich Tulane University 84 78 82 79 323 +35
T106 T111 Allie Bodemann Wake Forest 73 82 86 83 324 +36
116 T111 Yu Young Lee Duke 83 81 82 78 324 +36
T118 T113 Joy Trotter UC Irvine 87 79 85 74 325 +37
T111 T113 Mikaela Backstedt New Mexico 81 82 81 81 325 +37
117 T115 Hillary Packard UC Irvine 87 82 81 77 327 +39
T106 T115 Christine Wolf UT Chattanooga 85 78 78 86 327 +39
T106 T115 Rhea Nair Alabama, U. of 80 81 80 86 327 +39
T111 118 Tess Fordham Georgia 82 88 74 85 329 +41
115 119 Morgan Grantham New Mexico 82 83 80 86 331 +43
T121 T120 Caney Hines Texas 79 86 88 80 333 +45
T121 T120 Maria Juliana Loza UT Chattanooga 83 82 88 80 333 +45
T124 T120 Vaishavi Sinha Purdue 88 83 85 77 333 +45
123 123 Leigh Crosby Georgia 87 80 87 81 335 +47
120 124 Lauren Spurlock Tennessee 84 83 85 84 336 +48
T124 125 Jessica Hauser Ohio State 93 81 82 84 340 +52
126 - In Hong Lim Ohio State 83 77 W W - -