Oct. 9, 2005

Chapel Hill, N.C. – The South Carolina women’s golf team posted its best single-round score this season with a five-over-par 293 Sunday to finish tied for ninth with Florida State with a final three-day score of 305-323-293=921 at the Lady Tar Heel Invitational. Sunday’s total at the par-72 UNC Finley Golf Course was the second-best team total on the day, trailing only the 279 put up by tournament-winner Duke, and was one stroke better than the 294 (on a par 70 course) the Gamecocks tallied in the final round at last week’s Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Intercollegiate in Albuquerque, N.M.

Junior Jenna Pearson mirrored South Carolina’s steady improvement each day to finish with an even-par 72 Sunday, her best score in six rounds this season. Pearson shot a total of 10-over-par 226 to close out tied for 25th overall at the University of North Carolina-hosted event.

Erica Battle, a senior from Irmo, S.C., inched three spots up the leader board with a final day 76 to finish 40th overall with a 15-over-par 231. Battle struggled early in her round on Sunday, but closed strong with two birdies on her final three holes.

Sophomore Blythe Worley, who competed as an individual, came in just behind Battle in a tie for 41st with a 16-over-par 232, and like Battle, also shot a four-over-par 76 on Sunday. Senior Laura McCaslin finished one stroke behind Worley, both on the final day and through all three days of the tournament, shooting a five-over par 77 and a 17-over-par 233 overall.

Sophomore Camila Mori was one of three Gamecocks to improve her total each round through three days in Chapel Hill. Last year’s Atlantic Sun Conference Freshman of the Year at Campbell before transferring to South Carolina this season, Mori joined Pearson in shooting an even-par 72 on Sunday to close out at a 20-over-par 236. Fellow sophomore Whitney Simons also shot better each day as the tournament progressed, finishing with a one-over-par 73 and a total tally of 238.

South Carolina will take the next two weekends off before heading to Destin, Fla., for the ACC/SEC Challenge Oct. 28-30.

Final Team Standings1 Duke  -3  294 288 279 8612 Auburn    +18 300 286 296 8823 Vanderbilt    +29 300 291 302 8934 Wake Forest   +32 302 293 301 8965 Virginia  +36 300 303 297 9006 Texas A&M +40 305 293 306 9047 Ohio State    +41 309 296 300 9058 North Carolina State  +51 305 311 299 915T9 South Carolina   +57 325 303 293 921T9 Florida State    +57 315 300 306 92111 Oklahoma State   +59 328 293 302 923T12 LSU +60 316 298 310 924T12 Tulsa   +60 312 305 307 92414 North Carolina   +62 316 298 312 92615 Tennessee    +64 321 307 300 928T16 Texas   +74 307 312 319 938T16 Kentucky    +74 323 302 313 93818 North Carolina (B)   +122    342 326 318 986
Gamecocks On The Individual Leader BoardT 25 Jenna Pearson   +10 79-75-72=22640 Erica Battle   +15 81-74-76=231T 49 Laura McCaslin +17 80-76-77=233T 59 Camila Mori   +20 86-78-72=236T 68 Whitney Simons +22 85-80-73=238
*T 41 Blythe Worley   +16 81-75-76=232*--competed as an individual