Cougars Hold On for Third Place at Ron Moore Classic

DENVER -- Mother Nature dealt the Cougars a tough hand Tuesday at the Ron Moore Classic, but the women's golf team fought through the rain and cold to hold on for a third-place finish.

With temperatures in the mid-40s and a driving rain nearly the entire day at the par-72 Highlands Ranch Golf Course, just two golfers shot even par and scores shot up by nearly four strokes, with the 89-golfer field averaging 82.26 in the final round.

BYU Assistant Coach Dave DeSantis said there was a 35-degree difference in temperature from Monday to Tuesday. Such a drop in temperature can cause a lot of problems he said.

"It's a real endurance test," DeSantis said. "The bad weather only magnifies any bad shots you make."

Despite all the problems from the weather, the Cougars still managed to find a lot of positives on a cloudy day.

"The only reason we make mistakes is to learn from them," BYU Coach Sue Nyhus said. "We're going in the right direction."

Nyhus's positive attitude carries over to her players and assistants.

"We got a lot of learning in today," DeSantis said. "But everyone's in good spirits."

And the Cougars have reason to be in good spirits. Three Cougars finished in the top-20, same as last week's impressive run at the Dick McGuire. Natalie Newren tied for seventh, Margaret Gibby landed one stroke back in tenth and Rachel Newren shot a 230 to tie for 16th place.

Natalie Newren led the tournament in eagles with two. Rachel added 10 birdies, second most in the tournament. Gibby shot the Cougars' lowest score of the rain-soaked third round with a 77.

Sophomore Alexis Edwards played well during the third round until she was disqualified because of a ball provision.

The Classic provided a rare opportunity for all seven Cougar golfers to participate in an event.

The freshman duo of Juli Wightman and Ashley Childers tied for 27th place, an impressive feat considering the tournament was Wightman's second as a collegian and Childers's first. Wightman shot a 76-75-82--233 and Childers a 73-77-83--233. Competing as an individual, Childers carded an impressive eight birdies in the tournament.

Danielle von Arnim also competed as an individual. She played well in the first two rounds but was bothered by the weather during the third round to place in a tie for 69th.

The Cougars will try to dry out in time for the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational in two weeks. Nyhus said the team is already looking forward to the next tournament, after all as Nyhus always says with a big smile on her face: "It's only the beginning of a great season."

Rk.  School                  Scores
1   San Francisco, U. of     291  302  315    908       +44 
2   Iowa State Univ.         303  306  300    909       +45 
3   Brigham Young Univ.      299  289  324    912       +48 
4   Denver, Univ. of         301  307  313    921       +57 
5   Colorado State Univ.     299  306  317    922       +58 
6   UC - Irvine              306  301  319    926       +62 
    Colorado, U. of          306  311  309    926       +62 
8   Nevada, U. of            293  313  330    936       +72 
9   Texas El Paso, U. of     311  308  318    937       +73 
10  Long Beach State         310  315  314    939       +75 
11  Portland State Univ.     301  320  327    948       +84 
12  Northern Arizona U.      315  318  322    955       +91 
13  Wyoming, U. of           305  307  346    958       +94 
14  Weber State Univ.        316  310  339    965      +101 
    Arkansas-Little Rock     312  317  336    965      +101 
16  Northern Colorado        312  328  332    972      +108
BYU Golfers
Rk.   Golfer                    Scores
T7    Natalie Newren           74   73   78    225
10    Margaret Gibby           76   73   77    226
T16   Rachel Newren            75   68   87    230
T27   Juli Wightman            76   75   82    233
T27   Ashley Childers*         73   77   83    233
T69   Danielle von Arnim*      79   79   89    247
DQ    Alexis Edwards           74   78   DQ
89 participants
*competed as an individual