No. 24 women's golf travels to LSU

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The 24th-ranked University of Arkansas women’s golf team dusts off the clubs returning to action this weekend at the LSU/Cleveland Golf Classic in Baton Rouge, La., Friday-Sunday at the University Club Course. Arkansas has had a long break since its last fall event but is opening the spring with a renewed sense of purpose. “It’s been a long break,” acknowledged Arkansas head coach Shauna Estes-Taylor. “We’ve used that time to get in shape in the gym and on the course. I wanted to put together the toughest schedule I could and I chose events that I knew would have good fields. We’ve prepared ourselves to play the best teams in the country and to get ready for postseason.” This year’s event is scheduled to for the University Club and plays 6,511 yards and is a par 72 course. Arkansas did not participant in last year’s event which was won by Florida State with a plus-20 854. Arkansas’ last regular season appearance came in 2000 when they finished fourth with a 956. This is the 10th event the University Club has hosted for the LSU women’s golf team. Arkansas has been pretty steady in the traveling five and does not change this week. The Razorbacks travel lone senior Lucy Nunn, juniors Kristin Ingram and Alex Schulte, sophomore Kelli Shean and freshman Katy Nugent. Nugent was the top qualifier this week followed by Nunn, Shean, Ingram and Schulte. “Katy has come so far already as a freshman,” said Estes-Taylor. “Lucy is solid and will score well for use and Kelli, I think, is one of the best ball-strikers in college golf. We made a swing change with here and I’m excited to put it into play.” Shean leads the team this year and is ranked 11th in the SEC with a 74.42 stroke average through 12 rounds. Nunn is close behind ranking 12th in the SEC and second on the team with a 74.92 average. “We’ve been working really hard the last five or six weeks,” said Shean of the break. “We’ve made a lot of changes and I think we’re ready to get back out on the course. We have set some pretty high goals for ourselves at the end of the season and we know that our competition will prepare us for the postseason.” Since the University Club opened, the course has hosted two NCAA Regional events in 2002 and 2007, along with the 2004 Southeastern Conference Women’s Championship. Again another stellar field is lined up for this week’s regular season event. Joining the LSU Tigers and Arkansas will be the College of Charleston, Colorado, Furman, Kentucky, Louisville, Mississippi, Mississippi State, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, South Carolina, TCU, Tulane, UNC-Wilmington, Virginia and Wake Forest. “This is a great golf course,” said Estes-Taylor. “It’s wide off the tee and can get windy but we’ve seen enough of that here so that we’re ready.” The next month is tough for the Razorbacks. Arkansas travels to the Betsy Rawls Invitational March 20-22, the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic March 27-29, and the Bryan National April 3-5 as the spring continues. For more information about Arkansas women’s golf, log on to ArkansasRazorbacks.com.