FINDLAY, Ohio ? The No. 7 Tarleton TexAnns fought through the wet and cold weather, and an injury, to finish tied for sixth in the nation with Ferris State at the 2009 NCAA Division II National Championships in Findlay, Ohio.
Tarleton and sophomore Carla Cooper, who both led the national tournament after the first round of competition, fell back to a tie for sixth place overall. Cooper, who suffered a back injury at the beginning of yesterday's 36-holes of play, finished tied for 28th overall with a four-round total of 318. After shooting 70 on Wednesday in the first round of the tournament, she shot a 79 and 84 on Friday and finished with an 85. The sophomore fought through and played hurt on Saturday though prior reports said she might not get to do so.
Freshman Katy Ward led the TexAnns in the tournament. She shot 76, 78, 81 and 78 to finish with a 313 and tying for 15th overall amongst the individual standings.
Junior Andrea Lowe finished the tournament with a 323 and tied for 35th. She shot a 75, 80, 80 and 88 at the event while sophomore Melanie Tham was 44th overall with a 328 (81-85-79-83). Freshman Candice Brister was No. 50 and shot a 336 at the championships (80-83-89-84).
As a team, the TexAnns shot a 1,275 after going 301, 320, 324 and 330. The 301 was the lowest round of the tournament for any team. Nova Southeastern won the tournament with a 1,230 (314-302-307-307) while Grand Valley State was second with a 1,245 (310-309-317 and 309). Rollins (309-315-310-314) and Indianapolis (307-311-315-315) finished tied for third with a 1,248 each. Florida Southern finished in fifth place where the TexAnns have finished the last two years. FSU finished with a 1,258 (320-307-320-311).
Finishing behind the TexAnns was Upper Iowa with a 1,303 (321-329-322-331) while West Texas A&M (329-326-329-334) and Concordia-St. Paul (315-323-334-346) finished tied for ninth with a 1,318. Augustana College finished No. 11 with a 1,354 (338-343-329-344) and Cal State-Chico finished No. 12 with a 1,361 (334-344-337-346).
Though the results may not be what head coach Jerry Doyle was looking for, the TexAnns can still lay claim to being the most successful women's golf program in the past three seasons in any of the three NCAA levels. The TexAnns have won 18 tournaments, dating back to the 2006-07 season. Tarleton has claimed four straight regional titles as well. The TexAnns have claimed a victory in 18 of their last 28 tournaments and have finished in the top five in all but this event. In head-to-head competition against teams in their division, the TexAnns are 253-30 in the last three seasons, including a 186-16 mark in the 2007-09 and 2008-09 seasons.
