Women's Golf Set To Battle Pac-10 Teams At Conference Championship
April 20, 2000
SCHEDULE: The Oregon State women's golf team will be in Eugene, Ore. at the par 72, 6,000-yard Eugene Country Club for the Pacific-10 Conference Championships Apr. 24-26. The teams will play 18 holes on each day beginning Monday morning at 8:30.
THE COURSE: The Eugene Country Club Golf Course - ranked 87th in the nation - hosted the women's Pac-10 Championships in 1991, as well as the men's Pac-10 Championships in 1987 and 1997. The ECC also hosted the men's NCAA Championships in 1959 and 1978.
LAST YEAR: The Beavers finished ninth at last year's Championship, shooting 313-305-315--933 at the par 72 Stanford Golf Course. Rachel Borcherts lead the team with a 231 to tie for 26th, Anne Brooksby and Erin Borcherts tied for 28th with 232, Kathleen Takaishi -since graduated- tied for 43rd at 239, and Reena Eklund shot 245 to tie for 49th.
Stanford won the tournament with an 876, while Arizona State's Grace Park won the individual honors with a 5-under-par 211.
STARTERS FOR PAC-10s: Stacie Ferguson (Fr., Tucson, Ariz.) Played in five tournaments, best finish tied for 36th at Ihlanfeldt ... averaging 79.4 strokes ... shot career-low 74 at Ping/ASU Apr. 7-9.
Carina Olsson (Jr., Sollentuna, Sweden) Tied for seventh at Peg Barnard Collegiate on Apr. 15-16 in her best finish of the season ... finished tied for 16th at ASU/Ping tournament Apr. 7-9 ... also tied for 16th at Rainbow Wahine tournament in fall ... averaging 77.8 strokes in six tournaments ... shot season low 72 at ASU ... tied for 26th at Dr. Thompson's.
Rachel Borcherts (Sr., Las Vegas, Nev.) Last year at Pac-10s, shot 76-76-79--231 to tie for 26th ... averaging 77.8 strokes per round in eight tournaments ... recorded first collegiate hole-in-one on Apr. 7 in first round of ASU/Ping tournament ... tied for 13th at Peg Barnard Apr. 15-16 at 10-over-par 154 ... set career standard with final-round 71 at ASU Apr. 7-9 en route to a tie for 16th at 7-over 223 ... has four top four finishes in her career ... tied for 44th at Dr. Thompson's ... owns a tie for third-lowest round in OSU history with her 71 at ASU.
Brie Del Bone (So./Tr., Eugene, Ore./Univ.of Nevada) Averaging 77.3 strokes in six rounds since transferring from Nevada ... a Eugene native, Del Bone has played the Eugene Country Club numerous times ... Shot season-low 70 at Arizona Invitational Feb. 21-23 in her first tournament as a Beaver ... 70 is also second-best score in OSU women's golf history.
Anne Brooksby (Jr., Portland, Ore.) Tied for 28th last year at Pac-10s, shooting 80-74-78--232 ... averaging 78.5 strokes over team-leading 24 rounds played ... best finish tied for eighth at Rainbow Wahine Nov. 8-10 ... also fired season-low 73 at Rainbow ... shot 233 at ASU/Ping Invitational Apr. 7-9.
Reena Eklund (playing as an individual) (Sr., Medford, Ore.) Tied for 49th at last year's Pac-10 Championship, shooting 82-80-83--245 ... averaging 80.3 strokes over 18 rounds ... 80.3 is second-lowest average of her career ... season low of 76 ... best finish of 27th at Ihlanfeldt Invitational in fall.
HEAD COACH RISE LAKOWSKE ON THE TEAM: "Our attitude is good. They've been playing better and they're excited about post season play. They know they still need to work hard on their short game, and the kids that aren't going to Pac-10s know that they need to continue to support their teammates.
"They have made some good progress this season. They've had two of their lowest scores ever in the two tournaments in Arizona. I think we're making good progress, and we are where I was hoping we would be. Now I think we have an opportunity to play well at Pac-10s. Playing well at Pac-10s is not determined by your actual place of finish. All 10 teams should probably qualify for Regionals, out of 13 spots. It's the strongest golf conference in women's golf right now. How we play is not about place or finish, it's about score, but I think we have an opportunity to finish fifth or sixth, and if you finish fifth or sixth, you could be in the top-10 in the country."
LAKOWSKE ON THE COURSE: "We haven't had a chance to play the course in Eugene. It's a private club and fairly difficult to get on. Oregon plays it a couple times per week, which is going to be an advantage for them. The course is really tight and the greens are fast. It's a very good golf course, so it will be a good test and a good place to have a championship. It's not a wide-open, desert kind of golf course, it's more of a traditional Northwest golf course.
"We play most of the winter out at Trysting Tree, so we don't get a lot of looks at that kind of course. We have been playing at Corvallis Country Club, which is tight and has smaller greens that are quick right now, so I think that's going to help us. You have to hit the ball straight and keep it in play, so a lot of that went into the decision-making as to which girls went. Brie Del Bone, who is from Eugene, has played the course before."
THE FIELD: All 10 members of the Pacific-10 Conference are ranked in the Apr. 19 MasterCard Collegiate Golf Rankings. Arizona heads the list at No. 1, followed by Southern California (3), Arizona State (4), Stanford (6), UCLA (14), Oregon (19), California (22), Washington (34), Washington State (48), and Oregon State (49).
Individually, eight Pac-10 players appear in the top 25. Jenna Daniels of Arizona is ranked first in the country, with Arizona State's Miriam Nagl right behind at No. 2. Rounding out the list are USC's Candie Kung (4), UCLA's Amanda Moltke-Leth (8), Arizona's Cristina Baena (9), Stanford's Stephanie Keever (11), Arizona's Jill Gomric (13), and Stanford's Hilary Homeyer (21).
OSU AT THE PAC-10s: Last year, OSU finished ninth, shooting a 933. OSU's best finish was sixth in 1993. Here is a look at what Oregon State has done historically at the Pac-10 Championships, with year, finish, score, and location:
1999- 9th/933 (Stanford, Calif.), 1998- 7th/927 (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.), 1997- 8th/934 (Tacoma, Wash.), 1996- 8th/957 (Tucson, Ariz.), 1995- 8th/949 (Corvallis, Ore.), 1994- 8th/999 (Los Angeles, Calif.), 1993- 6th/945 (Walla Walla, Wash.), 1992- 8th/973 (Tempe, Ariz.), 1991- 8th/1003 (Eugene, Ore.), 1990- 9th/976 (Stanford, Calif.), 1989- 9th/1057 (Pasadena, Calif.), 1988- 9th/1440 (Redmond, Wash.), 1987- 8th/1369 (Tucson, Ariz.).
LAST YEAR'S RESULTS: 1. Stanford, 876, 2. Arizona, 888, 3. Arizona State, 893, 4. UCLA, 899, 5. USC, 901, 6. Washington, 915, 7. California, 916, 8. Oregon, 919, 9. Oregon State, 933, 10. Washington State, 945.
LAST ACTION: Oregon State sent an 'Orange' (JV) team to the Peg Barnard Collegiate tournament Apr. 15-16 in Stanford Calif.. OSU finished sixth, with Rachel Borcherts led the way at ASU, as they shot 7-over-par 223s to tie for 16th.
RACHEL BORCHERTS TIES THIRD LOWEST OSU ROUND AT PING/ASU: Senior Rachel Borcherts' 71 in the final round of the Ping/Arizona State Invitational tied her for the third lowest round in school history. Teammate Andrea Hehn had a 71 at the 1999 Arizona Invitational. Danielle Mitchell fired a 71 during the 1993-94 campaign, and Kathleen Takaishi carded eight 71s over her career.
OSU POSTS FOURTH-BEST SCORE IN SCHOOL HISTORY: The Beavers second round 295 at the Arizona Invitational Feb. 21-23 was the fourth-lowest 18-hole score in the history of the OSU women's golf program. The all-time low is 289, set by the 1998-99 squad at the Wahine Invitational.
HEHN'S 69 AT ARIZONA INVITATIONAL TIES OSU RECORD: Andrea Hehn, a senior, shot her second career 69 in the second round of the Arizona Invitational Feb. 21-23 to tie her for the lowest score in OSU women's golf history. Hehn's first 69 came at the Stanford Invitational during the 1997-98 season. Kathleen Takaishi and Anjeanette Dabbs also have 69s to their credit.
DEL BONE TIES SECOND BEST SCHOOL ROUND: Sophomore transfer Carina Olsson. Takaishi, Dabbs, and Hehn have all shot 69s in their career to own a piece of the lowest score in Oregon State women's golf history
THE COACHING STAFF: Head coach Rise Lakowske is in her 10th year as head coach of the Oregon State women's golf program. During her tenure, Lakowske has elevated the Beavers to national prominence after years of obscurity in women's golf. Under her guidance, Oregon State has reached six consecutive Western Regionals. Lakowske was named Far West District Coach of the Year in 1998 when her team tied for 10th at the NCAA West Regional and 16th in the NCAA Championships.
Lakowske played in four National Golf Championships while golfing for Oregon State from 1973-77. She won four tournaments during her career, as well as several non-collegiate events. She played professionally until 1981.
Born in Laurel, Miss., Lakowske began playing golf when she was eight years old. Now, as a coach, she is known for her rapport with her student-athletes, and impresses on her student-athletes the importance of setting team and individual goals as well as striving for success in the classroom.
Brian Watts returned to Oregon State this year after five years in private business. Watts coached at OSU as an assistant during the 1996-97 and 1997-98 seasons. After playing on the Golden State Tour, Florida State Tour and the Canadian PGA Tour for four years, he brings back tremendous experience to the OSU program. He also worked as an assistant professional at the DeBell Golf Course in Burbank, Calif., and at Golf Classics of America in Beverly Hills and San Dimas.
Watts graduated from Western Oregon University in 1989 with a bachelor of science in physical education. He also attended Oregon State.
