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Tuesday, March 20, 2018

Whaley catches fire to lead North Carolina to title in Briar's Creek Invitational; Penn State takes fourth


   It almost seemed to come out of nowhere.
   North Carolina’s Kelly Whaley, a junior from Farmington, Conn., has struggled at times this season. But Tuesday she capped a brilliant two days in the Briar’s Creek Invitational, firing a 3-under 69 over The Golf Club at Briar’s Creek layout, her worst score of the tournament, to capture the individual title with a remarkable 12-under-par 204 total.
   But it came from somewhere. It likely came from a whole lot of hard work finally paying off. Sure, she found some confidence, but if there isn’t a good player in there somewhere to begin with, all the confidence in the world doesn’t matter.
   It looked like it was starting to come when the Tar Heels took a spring break trip to St. George, Utah for the Entrada Classic last week and Whaley finished with a 1-under 71 and an even-par 72 to end up alone in 14th place at 2-over 218.
   She is the daughter of Suzy Whaley, the first female elected to a PGA of America office. So there’s some genetics there and some expertise that not every player gets from her mom.
   Or maybe North Carolina coach Jan Mann’s attempt to make sure her team is having fun finally paid some dividends. Of course, the game’s always fun when you’re making a bunch of birdies.
   Whaley’s performance coincided with a bust-out performance by the entire North Carolina team as the Tar Heels gave everybody a glimpse of the team they can be, because for two days in Johns Island, S.C., they were that team.
   North Carolina, No. 29 in the latest Golfstat rankings, fired rounds of 2-under 286 and an eye-opening 9-under 279 in Monday’s double-round, but Campbell, probably a little underrated at No. 40, was right there in second at 10-under 566. North Carolina was at 11-under 565.
   With some weather concerns Tuesday, there was an 8 a.m. shotgun start and North Carolina kept pouring it on with a 5-under 283 that added up to a 16-under 848 total. Campbell hung tough with an even-par 288, but it was not enough to catch the Tar Heels as the Fighting Camels finished second at 10-under 854.
   Maybe the golf course played into the hands of the Tar Heels, but North Carolina and Campbell were the only two teams to finish under par. Still, it is the kind of spark North Carolina has been looking for. Maybe the Tar Heels are not 16-under good all the time, but surely they are better than the 46-over total they posted at the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate a couple of weeks ago, albeit on a tougher golf course and against an elite field.
   No. 23 Illinois finished third at 3-over 867 after an even-par 288 in Tuesday’s final round.
   And speaking of bust-out performances, No. 64 Penn State checked in with a solid fourth-place finish. The Nittany Lions sandwiched a 2-over 290 in the middle round with a pair of 6-over 294s for a 14-over 878 total. They were 11 shots behind Big Ten rival Illinois, but Penn State coach Denise St. Pierre had to be heartened by her team’s showing against a solid field.
   No. 52 Texas Tech was another four shots behind Penn State in fifth in the 17-team field as the Red Raiders finished at 18-over 882 after a final-round 303.
   Obviously, the fuse for North Carolina’s explosion was lit by Whaley. She opened with a 4-under 68 over the 6,101-yard, par-72 Briar’s Creek layout Monday morning and did that one better with a 5-under 67 in the afternoon. Then Whaley finished with the 3-under 69 Tuesday morning to complete her sparkling 12-under 204 two-day tour of Briar’s Creek.
   North Carolina also got a strong showing from Bryana Nguyen, its senior stalwart from Columbia, Md. Nguyen finished alone in fifth at 3-under 213. After opening with a 2-over 74, Nguyen ripped off a 4-under 68 Monday afternoon before finishing up with a 1-under 71 Tuesday.
   It was a solid performance for sophomore Brynn Walker, the two-time PIAA Class AAA champion from Radnor. Her final round of 2-over 74 wasn’t even a counter for the Tar Heels, but Walker had rounds of  even-par 72 and 1-under 71 Monday. She ended up in a group tied for 12th at 1-over 217.
   It probably didn’t hurt that Walker got to renew acquaintances with some of her high school friends and rivals playing for Penn State.
   Chief among them is sophomore Madelein Herr, a former Council Rock North standout. Walker and Herr teamed up quite memorably for the inaugural U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Bandon Dunes in the spring of 2015 and all the then-high school juniors did was reach the semifinals. They came back with a run to the quarterfinals the following year at another Tom Doak design, the Streamsong Resorts Blue Course, in central Florida.
   Walker finished a shot ahead of her old partner, so there might have been a little bit of game within the game going on there. They certainly pushed each other to tremendous performances in those two Four-Ball appearances.
   North Carolina’s Ava Bergner, the freshman from Germany who was the Tar Heels’ best player last fall, finished in a group tied for 14th, that included Herr, at 2-over 218. Bergner sandwiched a 74 in the middle round with a pair of even-par 72s.
   Mariana Ocano, a sophomore from St. Petersburg, Fla., had a second straight solid showing, bouncing back from an opening-round 78 with a 1-over 73 Monday afternoon and a 1-under 71 Tuesday to finish in a group tied for 30th at 6-over 222.
   Clementia Rodriguez, a junior from Venezuela, competed as an individual and finished just a shot behind Ocano in a group tied for 36th at 223. Rodriguez was steady, adding a pair of 74s to her opening-round 75.
   Penn State was led by junior Cara Basso, the 2012 PIAA Class AA champion as a sophomore at Villa Maria Academy. Basso fired a 3-under 69 in Monday afternoon’s round and closed with a 1-over 73 to sneak into the top 10 as she was tied for 10th at 3-over 216.
   After a pair of 74s, Herr carded a 2-under 70 in the final round to move into the group tied for 14th at 218. She was joined at that figure by junior Lauren Waller, who lost in a playoff to Walker for the 2014 PIAA Class AAA championship as a senior at Canon-McMillan. Waller fired a 3-under 69 in the final round.
   Junior Jackie Rogowicz, a two-time District One champion and two-time PIAA runnerup at Pennsbury, stumbled in the final round with an 83 to finish in the group tied for 50th at 227. But Rogowicz was solid in Monday’s double-round with a 1-over 73 and a 1-under 71.
   Ariana Coyle Diez, a senior from Ireland, rounded out the Penn State lineup, finishing alone in 84th at 241. Her final-round 82, however, was a counter.
   The battle for the final spot in the lineup when it comes Big Ten Championship time is probably between Diez and sophomore Megan McLean, a product Voorhees High. McLean competed as an individual at Briar’s Creek and put up solid rounds of 75, 74 and 74 to finish in the group tied for 36th at 223.
   I’m left wondering if Penn State can do enough to earn a bid to an NCAA Regional. But a couple more efforts like the one they put forth in Johns Island certainly wouldn’t hurt. They have it in them. They just proved it.
   One other point about Whaley’s victory is worth mentioning. The runnerup, Campbell’s Desiree Andersson, a sophomore from Sweden, threw a dazzling 8-under 64 on the board in Monday afternoon’s second round. And Whaley never blinked.
   Andersson had opened with a 1-over 73 and her amazing 64 left her at 7-under 137, but still two shots behind Whaley. Andersson matched par in the final round with a 72 to claim runnerup honors at 7-under 209. She was overshadowed a little by Whaley’s fireworks, but 64 is 64.
   Andersson’s teammate and fellow Swede, senior Annelie Sjoholm, shared third place with Coastal Carolina’s Malene Krolboll Hansen, a senior from Denmark, at 4-under 212, three shots behind Andersson. Sjoholm sandwiched an even-par 72 with a couple of 2-under 70s. Hansen opened with a 3-under 69 and added a 1-under 71 before matching par with a 72 in the final round.
   Illinois’ Chayanid Prapassarangkol, a senior from Thailand, finished with a 3-under 69 to end up alone in sixth place, a shot behind North Carolina’s Nguyen at 2-under 214.



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