IU notches best finish of year

Paced by senior Shannon Johnson's 3-over-par 147 -- one off tournament winner Cathryn Bristow of Oregon -- the IU women's golf team finished fifth in the 16-team field at the 2006 Illini Spring Invitational this weekend. The Hoosiers, with a two-day score of 620 in the 36-hole event, were one shot shy of Illinois and only 10 strokes from tournament winner, University of Oregon.\nJohnson shot a 75 Friday and followed it with a stellar round of 72 Saturday. Her performance Saturday marked the third time in her last five outings where she has fired even par or better.\nIU coach Clint Wallman said he was excited with his team's effort and performance this weekend.\n"Had we played the last six holes a little better, we would have been right there at the top," Wallman said in a statement. "There is no doubt we gained confidence from this tournament, as well as a knowledge on how to compete for championships, which is equally important. Our focus this entire week was making good decisions on the course, and the girls did a very good job of that, which resulted in positive scores."\nJohnson wasn't the only Hoosier who shot well at the par-72 Stone Creek Golf Course. Four Hoosiers were up to the task of breaking 80 the second day. Sophomore Elaine Harris shot a 76 and tied for 19th overall with a combined score of 156. Freshman Tiffany Hockensmith tied her career-low round with a 77 to finish in a multi-player tie for 40th with a 161. Junior Jenny Kim also got in on the low-scoring action as she tied for 31st with a 159, including a 78 on the first day. Senior Molly Redfearn closed out the scoring for the Hoosiers with a 165.\nFreshman Amber Lindgren also made the trip to the Champaign-Urbana campus while playing as an individual. She carded a 79 and a 74, respectively. Her performance put her tied for 10th overall -- the first top-10 finish of her career.