IU shows steady improvement in sloppy weekend

A little wet weather wasn't enough to throw off the IU women's golf team this weekend at the Lady Northern Invitational. Playing with a home course advantage certainly helped the Hoosiers through the rough conditions as they finished fifth with a team score of 909. \n"The weather was tough, but overall we hung in there and did well as a team," freshman Amber Lindgren said.\nIU head coach Clint Wallman echoed Lindgren's thoughts about playing through the conditions. \n"Yesterday we had a great day, the best day this group has had since I've been here," Wallman said. "And our goal for the day was to improve upon yesterday's performance. Today they did that. It might not reflect in the score but they did it because the conditions were so much harder and it's harder to play a great round after you've played a fantastic round. To play as well as they did in the conditions was incredible."\nThroughout the weekend the rain played a huge factor in everything from club selection to putting, and caused emphasis to be put on the mental part of the game, Wallman said. \n"I tell the girls it's an opportunity," he said. "I believe that bad weather eliminates half the field because they're not mentally prepared."\nThe conditions might not have been ideal for golf, but a number of Hoosiers didn't take notice. \nSophomore Elaine Harris spearheaded the charge as she fired a 223, good enough for 12th overall. \n"It was really fun to be at home and have people watching," Harris said. "We've played here a lot and the support makes it easier." \nSenior Shannon Johnson, who was the team's leading scorer in the first two tournaments, shot a 225 for 17th place. \nThe best surprise for Wallman and his team was the play of freshman Amber Lindgren. The former all-state selection from Kokomo started with a 73 and a 75, putting her at the top of the leaderboard. She finished Sunday's final round with an 81. Her three-round score of 229 gave the team three members in the top 25 of the tournament along with Harris and Johnson. \n"Every part of my game came together," Lindgren said. "After having a couple of tournaments under my belt, it's a lot easier." \nWallman said the tournament gave him a glimpse of what his team is capable to do.\n"I believed all along that this team is capable of doing great things," Wallman said. "They took a giant step this week because they learned how to get it done."\nThe Hoosiers have a short break before their next match, the Shootout of the Legends, Oct. 10 and 11 in Franklin, Ind.