Frosty described both the weather and the golf Tuesday at the NCAA Fall Preview in Sunriver, Ore.
After weather delayed play for nearly two hours, the second-ranked Duke women’s golf team managed to retain a share of the lead it had entering the round despite shooting 10 over par.
Most of the 21-team field struggled as no school shot better than three over par. The Blue Devils are tied atop the leaderboard with Washington at nine over par. The Huskies shot eight-over-par Tuesday.
“We’re not a bit worried about Washington,” head coach Dan Brooks said. “Golf isn’t a game of team strategy. We don’t guard our opponents. We really have to go out and do the exact same thing as the first two rounds.”
Duke sophomore Brittany Lang, whose sparkling, school-record 64 propelled her to a first round lead Monday, struggled somewhat Tuesday, shooting a 74. Her three-over-par round dropped her to third place, four strokes behind the individual leader.
“There’s no difference in [Lang’s] attitude or play,” Brooks said. “She played and fought as hard as she could. Sometimes you don’t shoot 64.”
Fellow Blue Devils Niloufar Aazam-Zanganeh and Liz Janangelo each played consistently, shooting one over par and two over par, respectively. Janangelo sits at three over and is tied for 19th, and Aazam-Zanganeh is one stroke back in a tie for 22nd.
“Nilou shot one-over and told me after that she didn’t strike the ball well,” Brooks said. “That excites me in terms of tomorrow and the rest of the season.”
Other than Aazam-Zanganeh and Lang, the team’s play deteriorated over the final holes as Duke sped up to finish the round before sundown.
“I don’t want to use it as an excuse, but I noticed that we were rushed on a few strokes at the end because of the delay,” Brooks said.
Anna Grzebien was at even par for the day when she reached the 14th tee, but struggled on the last five holes, finishing at four over.
Freshman Jennifer Pandolfi faltered on the 14th, 15th, and 16th holes, losing four strokes. She battled back, however, carding a birdie on the 17th and a par on the 18th.
“[Pandolfi] is doing great. She’s in a new environment, and that can really affect your game. She’ll come along. Her game looks solid,” Brooks said.
Going into the final round, Arizona State trails Duke and Washington by two strokes. Oklahoma State and Georgia, each three back, round out the top five. Arizona State and Oklahoma State are each led by a player at eight under par, the best individual score.
UCLA, the only team ranked ahead of Duke in the preseason poll, trails the leaders by eight strokes.
“Winning tournaments is what we’re all about,” Brooks said. “We’re so used to being number one that number two doesn’t add any pressure. We don’t worry about rankings. I don’t think this tournament is any kind of indicator. We’ve already shown that we’re a team that can win any tourney.”
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