Sept. 27, 2005

Albuquerque, N.M. – The South Carolina women’s golf team stands in a tie for 13th place with a team score of 300-312=612 after Tuesday’s second round at the Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Intercollegiate, played at the University of New Mexico Championship Course.

Though she is playing as an individual with her score not counting toward the team’s total, sophomore Whitney Simons led the way for the Gamecocks Tuesday with an even-par 73. Simons got out to a torrid start, firing birdies on three of the first four and four of the first seven holes. Her score evened out as the day went on and Simons achieved par on each of her last five holes.

Among the players who are in the Carolina lineup, senior Laura McCaslin continues to lead the way. McCaslin fired a team-best three-over-par 76 Tuesday, sparked by steady play. The Cookeville, Tenn., native achieved par on 14 holes, canceling off a bogey on the first hole with a birdie on the second. She double-bogeyed her eighth hole and bogeyed the 10th, but was very sharp otherwise.

Senior Erica Battle finished Tuesday with a five-over-par 78, carding a birdie on the course’s par-five 18th hole for the second time in as many days. However, a double-bogey on the course’s fourth hole coupled with four other bogeys inflated a score that would have otherwise been solid.

A trio of Gamecocks wrapped up Tuesday’s action with a six-over-par 79. A pair of double-bogeys along with two bogeys on junior Jenna Pearson’s first seven holes put her at six-over-par through her first seven holes, but she came back to register a birdie and six pars on her next seven to stay afloat. Sophomore Blythe Worley was also hurt by a slow start and found herself at six-over-par through her first four holes, but she rebounded to shoot even par the rest of the way, highlighted by a pair of birdies on the sixth and eighth holes, respectively. Sitting at four-over through her first nine holes, sophomore Camila Mori fired birdies on two of the first three holes on the back nine, however a bogey and a double-bogey on her 13th and 14th holes pushed her back up to six-over, where she finished.

Final round action resumes Wednesday.

Team Leader BoardT1  Pepperdine  +2  F   296     290     586T1  Texas A&M   +2  F   294     292     5863   Ohio State  +3  F   287     300     587T4  New Mexico  +4  F   297     291     588T4  UNLV    +4  F   293     295     5886   USC     +9  F   293     300     5937   California  +17     F   297     304     6018   Baylor  +20     F   301     303     6049   BYU     +21     F   302     303     60510  TCU     +23     F   304     303     60711  UTEP    +24     F   309     299     60812  Tulsa   +25     F   305     304     609T13     South Carolina  +28     F   300     312     612T13     Colorado State  +28     F   302     310     61215  New Mexico State    +30     F   300     314     61416  San Diego State     +31     F   298     317     61517  Texas Tech  +35     F   314     305     61918  Hawaii  +56     F   328     312     640
Gamecocks On The Individual Leader BoardT19 Laura McCaslin  72-76-148   (+2)T41 Jenna Pearson    74-79=153   (+7)T60 Erica Battle  77-78=155   (+9)T69 Camila Mori    77-79=156   (+10)T79 Blythe Worley    80-79=159   (+13)
T19* Whitney Simons  75-73=148   (+2)
* Playing as an individual