CofC Women?s Golf Earns At-Large Bid to NCAA Tournament
4/30/2007 4:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
The National Collegiate Athletic Conference (NCAA) announced today via teleconference that the College of Charleston will be heading to the NCAA East Regional at University Club in Baton Rouge, La., as an at-large team. The NCAA East Regional is May 10-12th.
The women's team earned an at-large bid and will be making its second straight trip to an NCAA Regional. The Cougars made their first NCAA appearance last season, competing in the East Regional held at Bryan Park in Browns Summit, N.C., May 11th ? 13th. The team finished 15th behind Angie Hill, who shot a tournament low and CofC record 67 in the third round.
The selection marks the first time that a CofC women's team has earned an NCAA at-large tournament bid in any sport.
“I am extremely happy for the girls,” said Head CofC Women's Golf Coach Jamie Futrell. “We look forward to playing at LSU where we have had some success in the past.”
The Cougars competed at the NCAA East Regional site earlier this season. Charleston tied for 13th at the LSU/Cleveland Golf Classic held at the University Club March 16 ? 18th.
The women's golf team finished in the top 10 in seven of 11 tournaments this season. The Cougars won the Myrtle Beach Classic, shooting a school-record 890. Steffi Kirchmayr won the Palmetto Intercollegiate in October for her first career win. Charleston finished third at the Pelican Preserve Invitational behind Kirchmayr's and Rapp's tie at fifth.
The Cougars started the spring with two straight third-place finishes, at the Chrysler Challenge and Pinehurst Challenge. Fiona Puyo led the Cougars at Pinehurst, tying for sixth, while Kirchmayr paced the team at the Chrysler Challenge, tying for fourth.
Most recently, the Cougars tied for second at the Southern Conference tournament with Kirchmayr earning league Player of the Year honors. Megan Miller was selected to the All-Conference team.
Senior Megan Miller is the only returning 2006 NCAA Tournament participant. Senior Dinah Plyler, who is competing in the CofC top five in the SoCon tournament, was on the team last season but was not part of the top five that competed in post-season play. Miller finished fourth in the 2006 SoCon Tournament and tied for 61st in the 2006 NCAA tournament.
“Our goal was to become the first College of Charleston women's team to receive an NCAA at-large bid in any sport. We talked about making history and today this team made history.”
The NCAA Finals will be held May 22-25th at the LPGA International Golf Course in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Players Mentioned
