April 13, 1997

Purdue Claims Boilermaker Invitational Title

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - In the space of one year, the Purdue women's golf team has gone from a bridesmaid to a bride. Runners up in the 1996 Boilermakers Invitational, the 1997 Purdue squad took this year's title with a two-round score of 626. This put the Boilers four strokes ahead of Michigan, last year's champion. Missouri took third with a 63. Medalist honors went to Wisconsin's Sherri Bobber, who stroked a 155 over 36 holes.

Consistent play helped the Boilers earn the victory in the 10-team field. Purdue shot back-to-back 313s, while Michigan, who led after the first round, faltered in the second. The Wolverines shot a 306 on the first loop, but scored a 324 in the final round to finish with a 630.

Leading Purdue was junior Colleen Cashman and freshman Stacy Orschell. Both Cashman and Orschell tied for second with scores of 156. Purdue had two others in the top 10 as well - Angie Blythe and Heather Hasselberg. Blythe made dramatic improvement on her second loop. The sophomore finished the first round tied for 22nd, but rebounded to finish in a tie for fifth. Hasselberg, a junior, tied for eighth with a 158.

"We are real happy to come out with the win," head coach Bob Prange said. "This is the first time in four years that we've won our own tournament. Of course, I'm very pleased that we finished with four players in the top 10, which is a good, consistent showing."

Of special note was Nicole Green of Michigan's hole in one on the par-3 sixth hole.

The Boilermaker Invitational, played on Purdue's South Golf Course, was originally slated to be a 54-hole tournament. However, due to cold weather on Saturday afternoon, the tournament was pared down to 36 holes.

Purdue next plays at Iowa's Hawkeye Invitational on April 19-20. This is Purdue's final warm-up before the Big Ten Championships in East Lansing, Mich. on May 2-4.