May 6, 2008
HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, Fla. - With two rounds in the books and one round to left play on Wednesday, the Argos are seeing their chances of qualifying for the NCAA Finals slipping away. The outstanding season, capped last week with their third straight GSC title, may be coming to a close. The 12th ranked Argos are in Sixth Place in the South Regional, which includes the top four teams in the nation.
West Florida finished round two with a 328 score, just two strokes better than round one, and are sitting in sixth place with a total score of 658. Rollins College had the best score during day one with a 304, but they were surpassed by Nova Southeastern during round two, as Nova turned in a tournament best 293 to take a six stroke lead over Rollins after two rounds. Barry University is in third place with a 622, while the top ranked Florida Southern team fell from third to fourth place during day two, with a score of 627. Sixth ranked Lynn is in fifth place with a 633, leading the 12th ranked Argos by 25 strokes going into the final round.
The three day Regional tournament is being hosted by the Sunshine State Conference and the Central Florida Sports Community. The event is being played on the 6,165 yard, par 72 Mission Inn Golf and Tennis Resort Golf course at Howey-in-the-Hills, near Orlando, Florida. The final round is Wednesday, and the top two teams in the Regional along with the top two individuals not with one of those qualifying squads, will advance to the NCAA Championships on May 13-16 at Memorial Park in Houston, TX. At least two of the top four ranked teams in the nation will not qualify for the National championships, since the top four teams are all in the very competitive south regional. The 2008 NCAA Division II Women's Golf Championships will be hosted by the Rice University and the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority, as part of the Division II Spring Championships Festival.
Bhavna Shetty leads the way for the Argos and is currently tied for 16th place, after shooting a 77 and an 80 for a 13 over par 157. No golfers have shot under par for any round in the tournament. Nova Southeastern's Sandra Changkija carded an even par for round one, but fell two under par during round two. The best second round was turned in by Johanna Soderstrom of Barry University, with a one over par 73. Currently, Shetty has a chance at qualifying for the National Finals, with a strong third round. Depending on which two teams qualify, she needs, with the best case scenario, to pass seven golfers and pick up eight strokes on the position that currently would hold the last individual qualifier not from a qualifying team.
Tara Steakin has the Argos second best score through two rounds with a 29th place score of 165. Senior Rachel Christ, who is likely playing her last tournament as an Argonaut, is just behind Steakin with a two round total of 167. Meanwhile, Meaghan Gulliksen has carded scores of 86 and 83 for a total of 169, which puts her in 31st place. Natalia Espinosa, who is coming off the Individual Championship at the Gulf South Conference, has slipped a bit this week, and is currently in 33rd place with a two day total of 173.
