Strand helps Nebraska hold off Big Ten foe Ohio State to claim team crown in Westbrook Invitational

   It appears the arrival of Jeanne Sutherland, who had successful stints at Texas A&M and Southern Methodist, as the new head coach at Nebraska is having an impact.

   The Cornhuskers put together a solid final round of 11-under-par 277 to claim their second team crown of the wraparound 2022-2023 season as they held off Big 10 rival Ohio State for a seven-shot victory in the Westbrook Invitational, which wrapped up Monday at the Westbrook Village Golf Club in Peoria, Ariz.

   Nebraska put together solid rounds of 2-under 286 and 8-under 280 over the 6,248-yard, par-72 Westbrook Village layout in Sunday’s double round to take an eight-shot lead over Ohio State and Denver, out of the Summit League, going into Monday’s final round.

   Nebraska’s strong finish gave it a 21-under 843 total. Ohio State also had a nice finish, carding a 12-under 276 that left the Buckeyes seven shots behind Nebraska in second place with a 14-under 850 total. The victory enabled the Cornhuskers to move up 10 spots in the latest Golfstat rankings from No. 49 to No. 39. Ohio State maintained its spot inside the Golfstat top 25 at No. 24 after its runnerup finish at Westbrook Village.

   There were seven Big Ten teams in the field for the Westbrook Invitational, including host Wisconsin, and Nebraska beat all of them. Sutherland would appear to have the Cornhuskers on a path that would get them into an NCAA regional field in early May.

   Ohio State, which had opened with rounds of 2-under 286 and even-par 288, was led by individual co-medalist Caley McGinty, a redshirt junior from England and No. 26 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR). It was McGinty’s first individual title as a Buckeye.

   McGinty’s college career started at Kent State under current Ohio State head coach Lisa Strom, the 1994 PIAA champion at Lansdale Catholic. McGinty got off to a great start at Kent State in the ill-fated 2019-’20 season that was halted by the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic.

   McGinty had another outstanding season at Kent State, helping the Golden Flashes reach the NCAA Championship in 2021 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz., but then transferred to Oklahoma State to play under Greg Robertson, who had been the head coach at Kent State when McGinty was recruited to play there.

   When McGinty entered the transfer portal during the midseason pause in the 2021-’22 season, Robertson removed her from the Cowgirls’ lineup. Pretty sure Robertson had let it be known that if one of his players entered the transfer portal, she would no longer be part of the team.

   Strom, who returned to her alma mater as the head coach before the 2021-’22 season, was more than happy to add McGinty to a pretty strong Ohio State lineup. Pretty sure I spotted Strom watching one of McGinty’s matches during last summer’s Curtis Cup Match at Merion Golf Club’s historic East Course, where McGinty played on the Great Britain & Ireland side.

   McGinty closed with a 5-under 67 to get a share of the individual title with Denver’s Alyson Bean, a graduate student from Murrieta, Calif., each landing on 9-under 207.

   McGinty had opened with a pair of 2-under 70s in Sunday’s double round, which gave her a share of the lead going into Monday’s final round at 4-under.

   Bean had followed up a 3-under 69 in the opening round with a 1-over 73 in Sunday afternoon’s second round. But she closed with a flourish, carding a sizzling 7-under 65, the best individual round of the tournament, to get a share of first place with McGinty. It was the first collegiate individual victory for Bean.

   Bean’s strong showing led Denver to a third-place finish in the team standings, four shots behind Ohio State with a 10-under 854. The reigning three-time Summit League champion Pioneers recorded a pair of 1-under 287s in Sunday’s double round to share second place with Ohio State before finishing up with a solid 8-under 280.

   Somehow, Denver fell three spots in the latest Golfstat rankings from No. 44 to No. 47 following a pretty strong showing in the Westbrook Invitational.

   Kansas, out of the tough Big 12, was another five shots behind Denver in fourth place with a 5-under 859 total as the Jayhawks bounced back from an opening round of 6-over 294 with a 2-under 286 in Sunday afternoon’s second round before closing with a solid 9-under 279, a single-round program record. Kansas moved up a spot in the Golfstat rankings from No. 53 to No. 52 in the aftermath of the Westbrook Invitational.

   Another program record fell at Rutgers as the Red Knights were the third highest finisher among the Big Ten contingent, finishing two shots behind Kansas in fifth place with a 3-under 861 that was four shots better than their previous best total in a 54-hole event.

   After opening with a 5-over 293, Rutgers matched par in Sunday afternoon’s second round before closing with an 8-under 280, just one shot off the program record for a single round. The solid showing by the Red Knights moved them up from No. 110 to No. 105 in the Golfstat rankings.

   Another Big Ten entry, Minnesota, shared sixth place with another Big 12 representative, Oklahoma, and the Mountain West Conference’s UNLV, each landing on 2-under 862, a shot behind Rutgers.

   Minnesota bounced back from an opening round of 8-over 296 with an 8-under 280 in Sunday’s second round before finishing up with a 2-under 286. The Golden Gophers improved two spots from No. 59 to No. 57 in the Golfstat rankings following their trip to Westbrook Village.

   Oklahoma struggled in Sunday’s double round adding a 5-over 293 in the afternoon to its opening-round 294 before the Sooners went off with a 13-under 275 in Monday’s final round that was the best team round of the tournament. Oklahoma dropped four spots in the Golfstat rankings from No. 52 to No. 56 in the aftermath of the Westbrook Invitational.

   UNLV bounced back from an opening round of 8-under 296 with back-to-back 5-under 283s in the final two rounds. The Runnin’ Rebels maintained their No. 54 ranking with their tie for sixth place in the Westbrook Invitational.

   Reigning Colonial Athletic Association champion College of Charleston finished alone in ninth place with a 4-over 868 total as the Cougars added a 1-over 289 in Sunday afternoon’s second round to their opening-round 291 before matching par in the final round with a 288. College of  Charleston fell from No. 36 in the Golfstat rankings to No. 46 following their ninth-place finish in the Westbrook Invitational.

   Penn State, another Big Ten entry, rounded out the top 10 in the 14-team field as the Nittany Lions closed with their best round of the tournament, a 1-under 287, to finish three shots behind College of Charleston with a 7-over 871 total.

   Penn State just couldn’t get it going in Sunday’s double round, adding a 5-over 283 in the afternoon to their opening-round 291. The Nittany Lions remained their No. 73 ranking following the Westbrook Invtational.

   Leading the way for Nebraska was Kelli Ann Strand, a freshman from Chassis, Idaho who finished alone in fifth place, just two shots behind the co-medalists Bean and McGinty with a 7-under 209 total. Strand had a share of the individual lead heading into the final round after adding a 3-under 69 to her opening-round 71. Strand closed with a second straight 69.

   Backing up Strand for the Cornhuskers was Miu Takahashi from Japan, who finished in a trio tied for eighth place with a 4-under 212 total. Takahashi registered a pair of 1-under 71s in Sunday’s double round before closing with a 2-under 70.

   Nebraska’s veteran stalwart Megan Whittaker, a graduate student from Elkhorn, Neb., matched par with a 72 in the final round to end up among the group tied for 11^th place at 3-under 213 total. Whittaker had added a 71 in Sunday afternoon’s second round to her opening round of 2-under 70.

   The low Cornhusker in Monday’s final round was Michaela Vavrova, a junior from Slovakia who delivered a sparkling 6-under 66 as she climbed the leaderboard to finish in the group tied for 20^th place with an even-par 216 total. Vavrova had struggled in the opening round with a 76 and added a 2-over 74 in Sunday afternoon’s second round.

   Rounding out the Nebraska lineup was Lindsey Thiele, a junior from Wahoo, Neb. who finished among the group tied for 25^th place with a 1-over 217 as she sandwiched a counting 3-under 69 in Sunday afternoon’s second round with a pair of 2-over 74s.

   Another valuable addition to the Ohio State lineup has been Kary Hollenbaugh, a freshman from New Albany, Ohio who matched the 5-under 67 carded by her teammate McGinty in the final round to finish in a tie for third place with Kansas’ Jordan Rothman, a sophomore from South Africa, at 8-under 208, just a shot behind the co-medalists McGinty and Bean.

   Hollenbaugh, coming off a solid 11^th-place finish in a loaded field at the Therese Hession Regional Challenge, had opened with a 2-under 70 before adding a 71 in Sunday afternoon’s second round.

   Rothman also closed with a solid 5-under 67 to lead the way for the Jayhawks. Rothman had opened with a 3-under 69 before matching par in Sunday afternoon’s second round with a 72.

   Minnesota accounted for the next two spots in the individual standings behind Nebraska’s Strand as Luisamariana Mesones, a freshman from Peru, finished in sixth place with a 6-under 210 total and Emma Carpenter, a senior from DeKalb, Ill., was a shot behind her teammate in seventh place with a 5-under 211 total.

   Mesones and Carpenter were both among the group tied for the lead at 4-under following Sunday’s double round as Mesones added a 5-under 67 in the second round to her opening round of 1-over 73 and Carpenter added a 71 in the second round to her opening round of 2-under 69. Mesones closed with a 2-under 70 while Carpenter finished up with a 1-under 71.

   Joining Nebraska’s Takahashi in the trio tied for eighth place at 4-under were Rutgers’ Leigha Devine, a senior from Windsor, Colo., and UNLV graduate student Veronica Joels, a home girl from Las Vegas.

   After opening with a 1-over 73, Devine added a 1-under 71 in Sunday afternoon’s second round before closing with a solid 4-under 68. After opening with a 2-under 70, Joels recorded back-to-back 71s in the final two rounds.

   Mathilde Delavallade, a senior from France, has been Penn State’s best player all season and she led the way for the Nittany Lions at Westbrook Village as she finished in a tie for 17^th place with a 2-under 214 total. Delavallade added a 1-over 73 in Sunday afternoon’s second round to her opening-round 71 before closing with a 2-under 70.

   Backing up Delavallade for Penn State was Sarah Willis, a fifth-year player from Eaton, Ohio who finished in the group tied for 29^th place with a 2-over 218 total. Willis got off to a good start with a 1-under 71 in the opening round, added a 2-over 74 in Sunday afternoon’s second round and finished up with a 73.

   Isha Dhruva, a senior from Katy, Texas, landed in the group tied for 33^rd place with a 3-over 219 total as she had her best round of the tournament, a 1-under 71, in Sunday afternoon’s second round after she had opened with a 3-over 75. Dhruva finished up with a 73.

   Redshirt senior Taylor Waller, a scholastic standout at Canon-McMillan, had her best round, a 1-under 71, in Monday’s final round as she finished among the group tied for 49^th place with a 6-over 222 total. Waller had added a 3-over 75 in Sunday afternoon’s second round to her opening-round 76.

   Rounding out the Penn State lineup was Drew Nienhaus, a sophomore from St. Louis, Mo. who finished alone in 70^th place with a 229 total. After opening with a 2-over 74, Nienhaus recorded a pair of 77s in the final two rounds.

   Sophomore Michelle Cox, a three-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier during an outstanding scholastic career at Emmaus, competed as an individual for Penn State at Westbrook Village and finished in the group tied for 58^th place with a 7-over 223 total. After opening with a 1-over 73, Cox added back-to-back 75s in the final two rounds.