Feb. 22, 2008

First Round Results in PDF Format

The No. 13 Wake Forest women's golf team shot a 301 Friday to land in sixth place after day one of the SunTrust Lady Gator Invitational in windy Gainesville, Fla.

The Deacs won the Lady Gator in their last appearance at the event back in 2005.

"I don't think we had any really bad holes," Wake Forest head coach Dianne Dailey said. "We did not make a lot of pars on the back nine. The kids might've been getting a little tired but we weren't making the putts that we need to. Tomorrow will be a better day."

Freshman Natalie Sheary was the Deacs' top golfer for the fifth straight round, dating back to the fall semester. She shot a two-over 72, to settle in a tie for 11th heading into second round play Saturday.

Tournament host, Florida, takes a ten-stroke lead over second-place Louisville into Saturday's second round after carding a 280, even par. The total sets a new Lady Gator single-round record by two strokes. The Gators have won the tournament played on their home course 15 times since the event began in 1973.

Freshman Allie Bodemann and junior Nannette Hill tied for 21st as they turned in the second-best scores of the day for Wake Forest with five-over, 75s.

Senior Laura Crawford, the lone Deacon to have played at the event in 2005, recorded a 79 to finish nine over and in a tie for 49th.

Junior Jean Chua finished with a 12-over 82 Friday to land in a tie for 69th to end the scoring for the Deacs.

Senior Jordan Craig is participating as an individual and carded a six-over, 76 to finish in a tie for 27th place.

"I know we can play better. Everybody played sort of mediocre," Dailey said. "This is a course where you're course management skills have to be on all the time. We played too conservatively. Tomorrow, we're going to play a little more aggressive."

North Carolina's Sydney Crane takes a three-shot lead in the race for individual honors into Saturday's second round. Her first-round 66 ties for the lowest single-round score in tournament history.

The Tar Heels shot a 292 Friday to finish in third, 12 strokes off the lead.

Thunderstorms were projected for Friday but never developed. The wind picked up and became a factor in the first round, according to Coach Dailey. A 60 percent chance of rain is predicted in the Gainesville area for Saturday, according to www.weather.com.