Sept. 14, 2010

HANAHAN, S.C. – Junior Katie Burnett tied for fourth place at 2-under-par 214, leading the 22nd-ranked South Carolina women’s golf team to a fourth-place finish at the season-opening Cougar Classic, which wrapped up on Tuesday afternoon at Yeamans Hall Club.

The Gamecocks finished with a team score of 873 (+9), finishing one shot back of Oklahoma for the week after posting a final-round 294 (+6). Despite that, South Carolina’s team score ranks as the fourth-best 54-hole total in school history, with only the 2002 SEC Championship winning score of 861 and the stellar efforts at last year’s SEC Championship and NCAA East Regional ahead of this week’s performance.

Despite a slow start to the week, Burnett closed strong as she was 5-under over her final two rounds. She finished off the initial event of the season with a 2-under-par 70 to get her to 2-under for the week and in a tie for fourth place with Shena Yang of South Florida. The Brunswick, Ga., native was 2-under through five holes after birdies at the fourth and fifth, but gave one back with bogey at No. 6. She would then birdie No. 8 to make the turn at 2-under. A missed short par putt led to bogey at the 11th, but she would roll off six straight pars – missing three birdie putts by a fraction of an inch – before sticking her approach at the 18th to three feet and making her birdie to finish off a successful opening tournament. Burnett has earned a top-10 finish in the opening event of the season all three year of her Gamecock career, posting an 8th-place showing at the 2008 Cougar Classic and a tie for third place at the NGCA Match Play Qualifying last season.

Some of the most inspired play for the week came from freshmen. Samantha Swinehart posted a final-round 75 (+3) with two bad holes – double-bogeys at 12 and 14 – the difference on the day. She made a birdie at No. 4 and bogey at No. 7 to make the turn at even par, but a double-birdie-double stretch midway through her back nine left her over par for the day. Nevertheless, Swinehart earned a tie for 15th place in her first collegiate event.

Fellow freshman Suzie Lee had a consistent week with rounds of 73-73-74=220 (+4) giving her a tie for 17th place. Starting on the third hole with the 21-team shotgun start on Tuesday, Lee made bogeys on three of her first seven holes. But back-to-back birdies at holes 14 and 15 got her back to 1-over for the day as she finished the 18th with two holes to go. However, a bogey at the second hole – her last of the day – dropped her to 2-over for the round and 4-over for the tournament. Also in a tie for 17th place was sophomore Meredith Swanson, who went 72-73-75=220 (+4) with an up-and-down round on Tuesday. Three bogeys on her first four holes did not deter the native of Roanoke, Va., as she carded birdies at No. 9, 11 and 13 (along with a bogey at the 10th) to get back to 1-over with six holes to play. But she made bogey at 14 and 16, then recorded pars on her final three holes to finish at 75 (+3).

The team’s third freshman, Katie Rose Higgins, was impressive as an individual with a final-round 73 (+1) that moved her up 13 spots to a tie for 45th place. The Charleston native, playing on a familiar course, started with a birdie on the 17th (her first hole) but gave it back with bogey at the third. A double-bogey at No. 7 dropped her to 2-over, but she recovered nicely with two birdies over her next three holes to move back to even par for the day. However, she ended her day with a bogey at the lengthy par-3 16th to finish 1-over for the day and at 10-over-par 226 for the week. Sophomore Amanda Strang had a birdie and six bogeys en route to a 77 (+5) in her final round.

North Carolina was the wire-to-wire leader and took the team title at 860 (-4), eight strokes ahead of Mississippi at 868 (+4) as the Rebels posted the two lowest team rounds of the tournament with 284 on both Monday and Tuesday. Oklahoma edged out the Gamecocks by one shot for third place with a final-day 288 (E) to finish at 872 (+8).

Individually, Ole Miss’ Natalie Gleadall posted the low round of the tournament with a final-round 67 (-5) and vaulted from four strokes back to a two-stroke victory at 211 (-5). Tar Heel teammates Jackie Chang and Casey Grice finished at 213 (-2) to share runner-up honors, one ahead of Burnett and Yang.

The Gamecocks will now have just under a month to prepare for their next event, a trip to the Tar Heel Invitational in Chapel Hill, N.C., which runs Oct. 8-10 at the UNC Finley Golf Course.

SOUTH CAROLINA RESULTS
T4. Katie Burnett – 75-69-70=214 (-2)
T15. Samantha Swinehart – 71-73-75=219 (+3)
T17. Suzie Lee – 73-73-74=220 (+4)
T17. Meredith Swanson – 72-73-75=220 (+4)
*T45. Katie Rose Higgins – 77-76-73=226 (+10)
T77. Amanda Strang – 81-74-77=232 (+16)
*Played as an individual, score does not count toward team total

FINAL TEAM STANDINGS
1. North Carolina – 860 (-4)
2. Mississippi – 868 (+4)
3. Oklahoma – 872 (+8)
4. South Carolina – 873 (+9)
5. Florida – 875 (+11)
6. Florida State – 888 (+24)
7. Minnesota – 892 (+28)
8. College of Charleston – 896 (+32)
9. Wisconsin – 897 (+33)
10. Kentucky – 898 (+34)
T11. Maryland – 903 (+39)
T11. Central Florida – 903 (+39)
13. NC State – 908 (+44)
T14. Penn State – 909 (+45)
T14. Furman – 909 (+45)
16. South Florida – 918 (+54)
T17. Richmond – 921 (+57)
T17. UNC Greensboro – 921 (+57)
19. Miami (Fla.) – 927 (+63)
20. Mississippi State – 930 (+66)
21. Charleston Southern – 966 (+102)