Sept. 25, 2005

Cullowhee, N.C. - The Western Carolina women's golf team carded the second-best, two-round tournament score in the program's history to claim its second-consecutive team championship Sunday afternoon at the Elon / Sea Trail Intercollegiate in Sunset Beach, S.C. Senior Ashley Hovda led the way for the Catamounts, carding the lowest two-round individual score in WCU history to win individual medalist honors.

As a team, Western Carolina shot 295 on 18-holes on Saturday and Sunday to edge day one leader, Columbia, by three strokes, 590-to-593, to claim its second-consecutive tournament title. It marks just the second-time in school history that the women's golf team has claimed back-to-back team championships, with the other coming during the 2002 season. The host Phoenix placed third at 597 (299-298), with Bethune-Cookman and Winthrop rounding out the top five teams in the 18-team field.

After shooting the third-best individual round on Saturday with a 68, Hovda fired a 70 in the final round to hit the clubhouse with a two-day total of 138, three strokes better than the previous low two-round tournament score of classmate Brandy Andersen (141 at Great Smokies Intercollegiate, 2002). Her win was the second by a WCU individual as sophomore Malin Fryk claimed the top honors at the season-opening Draper Valley Intercollegiate.

Hovda was joined in the top 10 by Andersen, who shot 150 (73-77) to stand in a two-way tie for tenth marking her second-consecutive top 10 finish in '05. Fryk and junior Bianca Melone each finished with top 15 showings, each standing tied for 12th with identical rounds of 77 and 74 for two-round totals of 151. Sophomore Kandy Carland also shot 77 on the first day, but carded an 83 on the last 18 holes to finish tied for 47th with a 160.

Playing as an individual, senior Erika Danford shot consistently with a 79 on Saturday and a 78 on the final day to stand tied for 33rd with a 157.

The Catamounts return to action this weekend, but will be staying much closer to home. Western will host the seventh-annual Wachovia-Great Smokies Intercollegiate at the Waynesville Country Club beginning with practice rounds on Friday, Sept. 30, with the two, 18-hole rounds to be played Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 1 and 2. WCU is the defending team and individual champion as Hovda carded a career-low 67 to claim individual honors at last year's rain-shortened event. All told, Western has won three-consecutive team titles at the event and has taken medalist honors four years running.

After claiming team honors in each of their first two tournaments, the Catamounts will look to make school history by winning their third-consecutive tournament next weekend.

Elon/Sea Trail Women's Intercollegiate

 1. WESTERN CAROLINA          295-295 = 590
 2. Columbia Univ.            289-304 = 593
 3. Elon Univ.                299-298 = 597
 4. Bethune-Cookman           304-306 = 610
 5. Winthrop                  299-313 = 597
 6. Longwood                  315-298 = 612
 7. UNC Greensboro            307-308 = 615
 8. Mercer                    310-310 = 620
 9. Kennesaw State            319-323 = 642
10. Gardner-Webb              326-320 = 646
11. Appalachian State         327-325 = 652
12. High Point                330-324 = 654
13. Jacksonville Univ.        329-328 = 657
    The Citadel               332-325 = 657
15. Radford Univ.             322-336 = 658
16. Pfeiffer Univ.            331-329 = 660
17. Wingate Univ.             338-344 = 682
18. Hampton Univ.             379-389 = 768

Western Carolina Results
  1  Ashley Hovda      68-70 = 138
T10  Brandy Andersen   73-77 = 150
T12  Malin Fryk        77-74 = 151
T12  Bianca Melone     77-74 = 151
T47  Kandy Carland     77-83 = 160

Individual
T33  Erika Danford     79-78 = 157 

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