IU slips to 7th place following their strong start in competition

The IU women’s golf team entered Tuesday’s final day at the Johnie Imes Invitational in Columbia, Mo., in third place and a mere four shots behind the leader, Tulsa University. 

But the Hoosiers faltered on Tuesday, playing the final 20 holes at 31-over par, which dropped them down the leader board to a 7th-place finish as a team.

“We didn’t take advantage of our opportunities, and when we made a mistake, we compounded that,” IU coach Clint Wallman said. “We would get into position to score and make a birdie, and we wouldn’t convert.”

Darkness suspended play Monday evening with seniors Kellye Belcher and Laura Nochta along with junior Cecilia Orevik still on the course, having to finish the final two holes of their second round.

The Hoosiers played those final two holes in four-over par and were never able to find a rhythm in the subsequent third and final round.

A third-round 315 for the Hoosiers brought the final deficit from four shots off the lead at the start of the day to 19 shots behind eventual champion Wisconsin.

For the third-straight tournament, Nochta was the low Hoosier individually finishing in 18th place.

Freshmen Pamela Burneski and Kate Coons shared 29th place individually with a three-round total of 233.

Orevik had the low round of the week for the Hoosiers with a second round 73 and finished 38th individually.

Belcher rounded out the lineup in 45th place with a three-round total of 237.
The five Hoosier golfers accounted for 23 double or triple bogeys during the three rounds, a stat that did not sit well with Wallman.

“We had an opportunity to win it, and we knew it,” Wallman said. “It’s something that we really have been stressing, and we need to work on that more. I don’t know if it’s a concentration issue or a focus issue, but it’s something that we have to improve on.”

After starting the 2009-10 season with four straight tournaments, the Hoosiers will have four weeks off before closing out the fall portion of the schedule with the 2009 Challenge at Onion Creek in Austin, Texas.

“We definitely are disappointed with the way we played, but, hopefully we took away some learning experiences and know what we need to work on for Texas,” Nochta said.