2007 CCIW Women’s Golf Championship Preview

NAPERVILLE, Ill. – The College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Women’s Golf Championship kicks off this weekend with four member schools earning national attention.

CCIW women’s golf has received recognition in the national rankings as two CCIW women’s golf teams enter this weekend’s conference championship in the Golf World/National Golf Coaches Association (NGCA) Top 25 College Poll. Defending conference champion Illinois Wesleyan is ranked seventh in the nation among NCAA Division III schools, with 283 points, while Wheaton is ranked 21st with 77 points. Augustana (29 points) and Millikin (five points) earned a spot in the “others receiving votes” category.

Illinois Wesleyan head coach Kathy Niepagen and company have won the last five conference championships and will look for number six in a row this weekend, Oct. 5-6 at Red Tail Run Golf Club in Decatur, Ill. The Titans won a 17-team tournament at Red Tail Run last weekend at the Millikin Red Tail Run Classic. Maddie Murphy finished first with a two-day total score of 154, while Kristi Katz finished third with a score of 159. The team as a whole finished with a score of 642, topping second-place finisher DePauw who finished with a score of 650.

Wheaton’s place in the national rankings is a first for the program as it enters this weekend’s conference championship. This fall, the Thunder won three tournaments for the first time in school history, winning the Knox College Invitational, the Monmouth “Fighting Scots” Invitational, and the St. Ambrose “Fighting Bee Classic”. The team also finished either first or second in seven of nine tournaments this season. In its most recent tournament, Wheaton finished second at the North Central Golf Classic as Jenny Speckman placed first with a score of 78.

Augustana finished ninth at the Millikin Red Tail Run Classic with a team score of 722 as Rachel Gahn finished in a tie for 11th individually with a two-day total of 166. Gahn also put forth a strong showing at the North Central Golf Classic with a one-day score of 83 to place fifth overall. The team also placed fifth at the Sept. 25 meet with a score of 372.

This year’s conference championship host, Millikin, recently finished eighth at its own tournament last weekend, placing eighth with a team score of 708 as Brittany Hassee finished with a two-day score of 162, good for a tie for fifth. Hassee has finished first among her teammates in three tournaments this year, including a 12th-place, 168 score at the Illinois College Invitational, and a 58th-place, 172 at the Illinois Wesleyan Fall Classic.

Carthage placed sixth at the Millikin Red Tail Run Classic last weekend as the Lady Reds finished with a team score of 688. Kelly Lazar was Carthage’s top performer as she finished in a tie for fifth with a two-day score of 162. Shanna Agner tied for 27th (174), while Katie Ramirez tied for 34th at 178.

North Central recently took third at its own tournament on Sept. 25, finishing with a team score of 360. Alyssa Gaudio placed third overall with a score of 80, while at the Red Tail Run Classic, North Central was a seventh place finisher, picking up a two-day team score of 696. Gaudio again was the leader among her Cardinal teammates as she placed fifth with a two-day score of 162.

Elmhurst was a sixth place finisher at the Cardinal Classic with a one-day score of 377. Emily Labrecque finished fifth with a score of 83, while North Park freshman Colleen Horgan shot a 210 at the Red Tail Run Classic last weekend as the Vikings did not post a team score.