April 8, 2008

HATTIESBURG, Miss. - The West Florida women's golf team carded a score of 307 in the second round, which was one stroke better than Louisiana Monroe, and six strokes better than Southern Mississippi. Natalia Espinosa, Meaghan Gulliksen, and Bhavna Shetty all shot at least four strokes better in round two than round one. Espinosa would finish tied for the third best individual score.

The Argos round of 307 was even one stroke better than Southern Mississippi's opening round of 308. West Florida was sitting in 7th place after round one with a team score of 325. The impressive second round pulled the Argos into fifth place overall, just one stroke back of fourth place, and only 11 strokes from first place. The second round success in a tournament that included several Division I opponents, should be a great tune up for the conference tournament in two weeks.

The eighth ranked Argos placed four players in the top 25, led by Espinosa's third place finish. Espinosa played even par in the second round on Tuesday to jump from 15th place to third overall. Gulliksen finished tied for 13th, with her rounds of 81 and 77, while Shetty carded an 84 and a 77 to finish in a tie for 19th place. Meanwhile, Rachel Christ turned in a consistent score of 81-82 for a total of 163, which was good enough for 22nd best. Tara Steakin rounded out the Argos scoring with a 35th place finish of 84-88-172.

Shasta Averyhardt of Jackson State, won the individual title with an even par score of 142, while ULM's Angela Drane was second after carding a 144. Southern Mississippi was the team champion, with a 621 score, to edge out Louisiana Monroe by one stroke. Marshall University was third with a 628 total, while Birmingham Southern was fourth, just one stroke ahead of UWF, with a 631 score.

The Argos will head to Hot Springs, Arkansas for the Gulf South Conference championships, beginning April 19th on the Hot Springs Golf Course. The Argos are the two-time defending champions, and will be going for a three-peat this year.