Team finishes first tourney in 10th place

Heading into Monday and Tuesday's Central District Invitational in Parrish, Fla., the women's golf team hadn't played in competition in more than three months, and it showed in the first round. And despite a 25-shot comeback in the second round, the Hoosiers shot a 315 in the third and finished the tournament in 10th place.\n"Our team played well in the second round but (yesterday) we were disappointed with our play," sophomore Mary Lidester said. "I think the score we shot in the second round really showed our potential and what we can do as a team."\nThe Hoosiers opened their spring season with their worst round of the year. They found themselves in second-to-last place with a 319 team score. Senior captain Tiffany Fisher and sophomores Mary Lidester and Danah Ford all shot 7-over par 79s to lead the Hoosier contingent in the first round. \nThat all changed when the second round began. Also held Monday, the second round saw IU shoot a 294 team score, its best score of the year. Fisher led the Hoosiers with a 72, followed by Lidester with a 73 and sophomore Karen Dennison with a 74. \nBy the end of the first day, Fisher was tied for 23rd, Lidester was tied for 29th and Ford was tied for 36th with cumulative scores of 151, 152 and 154, respectively. Dennison finished in a tie for 48th place, and junior Cara Stuckey rounded out the Hoosier individual standings in a tie for 67th. \nIU finished the opening two rounds with a 613 team score, good for 10th overall in the field of 14 teams. Michigan State led the pack with a 588 cumulative score. \n "As a team, we just came out nervous this morning" head coach Sam Carmichael said in a press release. "But these girls knew that they weren't a 319 team, and they just went out, got comfortable and proved it."\n But the Hoosiers turnaround didn't continue to the second day and third round of the tournament. IU shot a 315 in the final round, enough to hold their position at tenth for the tournament but 21 strokes off the season-best they established in the second round. Lidester led the Hoosiers with a 75 in the\nthird round, followed by Dennison with a 79. Lidester also led the team in the final standings, tying for 23rd overall (227). Fisher tied for 38th (232), and Dennison and Ford both tied for 51st overall (235). \nHost Michigan State shot its third consecutive sub-300 round (296) on the final day to forge a comfortable 11-stroke victory. Senior Spartan Stacy Snider won the individual standings with a 216 score and was followed by teammates sophomore Allison Fouch and senior Emily Bastel in a tie for second at 217. Ohio State and Purdue tied for second place with team scores of 895, and Michigan took fourth with a 903. \n"It was tough for us to compete after such a long break but it's nice to have a tournament under our belt," Ford said. "We're really looking forward to our next tournament."\nThe Hoosiers next compete at the "Mo"morial in Houston, Tex., March 4-5.