University of Tennessee Athletics
Golf Cards School-Record, Holds Big Lead
April 02, 2011 | Women's Golf
April 2, 2011
By Zach Stipe, Media Relations Assistant
OXFORD, Miss. - Dazzling rounds from junior Nathalie Mansson, sophomore Erica Popson and freshman Kaitlyn Rohrback helped the No. 11-ranked Tennessee Lady Vol golf team record the lowest round in school history on Saturday during round two of competition at the Rebel Intercollegiate.
After carding a 9-under 279 team total, the Big Orange has a 36-hole total of 7-under 569 to lead the competition by 24 strokes heading into Sunday's final round. Tulsa (593) is in second place, while Coastal Carolina (595) and Southern Mississippi (595) are tied for third.
Mansson tied her career-best score with a 5-under 67 on Saturday at the par-72 6,351-yard Ole Miss Golf Course to take a one stroke lead in the medalist race over her teammate Popson, who fired a day-two 69.
Mansson's two-day total is 72-67=139, while Popson is at 71-69=140. Rohrback carded a 2-under 70 and is tied for seventh at 75-70=145 with sophomore Sara Monberg (72-73=145).
Rounding out the lineup for the Lady Vols is freshman Chessey Thomas, who is tied for 23rd with 76-73=149 total.
Tennessee will be seeking its second tournament victory of the 2010-11 season and its 22nd win all-time when it tees off in a shotgun start at 8:30 a.m. CT in a group with Tulsa and Coastal Carolina on Sunday.
"It was a great day for our team," Lady Vol head coach Judi Pavon said. "We finally had nice weather and really took advantage of it. We knew we had a round like this in our team so it was good to see it. I am really proud of Chessey for fighting back to have a good round after a tough start. Sara had another good round despite not feeling well. Nathalie finally broke through with a great round and Kaitlyn and Erica had very good days, too."
Mansson's 67 also set a tournament record. The Stockholm, Sweden, native carded seven birdies on Saturday, including back-to-back birdies on the par-4 Nos. 17 and 18 to cap the round. She has six rounds of par or better this season.
Popson didn't bogey a single hole during the second round, tallying 15 pars and three birdies. She and Mansson will both be seeking their third career tournament victories which would tie the Tennessee record.
Rohrback tied her season-best score of 70 with one bogey and three birdies on Saturday. She is looking for a second straight top-10 placement.
Monberg rebounded from a double bogey on Hole No. 4 to record three birdies, including one on No. 18 to wrap up her round.
Thomas was five-over-par after just six holes, but played four-under golf with five birdies over her final 12 holes to capture a solid 1-over score.
In addition to being a Lady Vol all-time best, Tennessee's day-two 279 is also a Rebel Intercollegiate record, as is the two-day total of 7-under-par 569.
Golfstat.com will have live results of the third and final round, while twitter.com/LadyVol_Golf will provide updates throughout the day.
| LADY VOL SCORES | ||
| 1. | Nathalie Mansson | 72-67=139 (-5) |
| 2. | Erica Popson | 71-69=140 (-4) |
| t7. | Sara Monberg | 72-73=145 (+1) |
| t7. | Kaitlyn Rohrback | 75-70=145 (+1) |
| t31. | Chessey Thomas | 76-73=149 (+5) |
| 1. | Tennessee | 290-279=569 (-7) |
