Feb. 26, 2008

RIO GRANDE, P.R. – South Carolina women’s golf opened its spring season at the Lady Puerto Rico Classic, finishing tied for seventh in head coach Kalen Anderson’s first tournament with the team. The Gamecocks tied fellow-SEC member Georgia with a three-round total of 890 (299-295-296), just 10 strokes behind tournament winner Alabama.

“For the first tournament of the spring, the team played pretty well,” Anderson said. “Everyone contributed good scores on different days and fought hard throughout the event. We made some mistakes from being rusty and having not played an event in a few months, but they are all things we can work on and improve through the rest of the spring. Overall, it was a fun week and a great chance for me to get to know the players’ games and personalities.”

Sophomore Bénédicte Toumpsin took third in the individual standings after opening the event with a total of 214 (-2). The Gamecocks’ stroke average leader bounced back from a two-over 74 in round one Sunday to shoot a career-best 68 on Monday, matching the lowest individual score of the tournament. She closed the event with a 72 to move up a spot on the final day of play.

Playing as an individual, senior Blythe Worley was the next Gamecock in the standings as she earned a share of 15th place by shooting 222 (+6) over three days. Worley started with a 75 on Sunday and proceeded to lower her score by one stroke in each round to hold steady in the individual standings.

Senior Laura Raffo played best in the first and last rounds of the tournament, finishing in 21st place, one stroke behind Worley at 223 (+7). After opening with a 72, Raffo battled to a 78 on Monday. The veteran pushed through with a 73 in the final round to move up four places in the standings.

Finding the opposite in her tournament, sophomore Taylor Barrett saw a second-round 73 as the highlight of her 41st place finish. She opened with a 76 and fought through a 78 on Tuesday to post a total of 227 (+11).

Senior Camila Mori ended the event on a high note with a final-round 73. With rounds of 77 and 78 on Sunday and Monday, respectively, she took 44th place with a final score of 228 (+12). Senior Whitney Simons rounded out the group in 60th place at 231 (+15). She turned in steady scores of 77, 76 and 78.

The top eight teams were tightly bunched together in the final standings. Second-place LSU was just three strokes shy of Alabama’s 880 score. Kent State and TCU tied for third at 887, while Arkansas and Purdue were in fifth place at 888. Arkansas’ Stacy Lewis maintained her individual medalist standing with a final score of 208 (-8), opening with a 68 before carding back-to-back 70s on Monday and Tuesday.

South Carolina takes a few weeks off to prepare for the LSU Cleveland Classic, which begins on March 14.