Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Boise State Goes Wire To Wire To Win Cowgirl Classic

Excuse the phrase, but this one came out of nowhere.


The Boise State women's golf team led all three rounds in winning the Cowgirl Classic in Handler, Arizona by 19 strokes.  Four Broncos finished in the Top 25 individually, led by medalist Hayley Young, who won the title by seven strokes.

The only way to sum up what this means is to compare it to past efforts in Bronco women's golf.  The last time a Bronco women's golf team won an event outright was 13 years ago.  The last time a Bronco individual won an even was eight years ago, and Young's win is just the sixth in the program's history.  To say they haven't done well is an understatement.  

"This is one of the proudest moments of my coaching career," head coach Nicole Bird said.. "To see how hard this team has worked and how positive they stayed throughout the week, was amazing.  "Leading a tournament for three rounds is a hard thing to do, but they have an incredible amount of talent and they never got flustered. The team remained confident and positive, and they definitely earned this trophy."

Young tied her career best with 71 on the first two days and finished with an even-par, 72.  Young was the only golfer in the 103-woman field to finish under par.  Freshman McKenzie Ford finished in fourth with a score of 225.  Lori Harper finished with a 72 to finish in a tie for 14th with a score of 231.  Freshman Sammie Pless scored her third Top 25 finish in four tournaments in finishing tied for 22nd with a 233.

Boise State (901 final score) not only led the tournament after each day, but they improved their performance each successive day.  The Broncos shot 307 on opening day, then went into the clubhouse with a 301 on day two, only to improve that with a sizzling 293, just two shots off the school record.

Xavier finished 19 shots behind Boise State for second.  The margin of victory was the most since 1993 when the Broncos won the Big Sky Championship.

Whether this means the team just got hot in Arizona, or whether it's a statement that the team will be a factor in the upcoming Mountain West Championships, we'll know soon.  That test is set for April 25-27 in Palm Springs, California.