Golf Finishes Third at Hurricane Invitational
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Behind two top-10 individual finishes, the Miami Hurricanes women’s golf team placed third Tuesday at the Hurricane Invitational at Deering Bay Yacht & Country Club.
Host Miami finished the two-day tournament at 46-over (301-300-297-898). Baylor won the tournament by four strokes, finishing at 31-over 883, followed by second-place Texas State at 35-over 887.
Oklahoma State’s Kelsey Vines took home individual medalist honors, finishing the Hurricane Invitational as the lone golfer under par. Vines shot 4-under 209, besting Texas State’s Krista Puisite, who finished second at even-par 213.
The Hurricanes were paced by sophomores Leticia Ras-Anderica and Rika Park, who both finished in the Top 10. Ras Anderica fired a 3-over 216, including a career-low 68 in the second round, to tie for fourth overall. Park carded a career-low-tying 69 in the first round and finished eighth overall at 6-over 219. Ras-Anderica is the first Hurricane golfer to card a 68 or lower since Jessica Steward at the 2007 UNCG Starmount Invitational.
“I feel pretty confident right now; I worked hard over the [winter] break to get my swing where I wanted,” Ras-Anderica said. “We have three days until we leave for UCF, so I’ll be working a lot on putting to get those scores lower.”
Park also notched her first top-10 finish of the season, highlighted by a collegiate best first-round 2-under 69, and marks her fifth top-ten performance.
“It was very good motivation and it brings some confidence to our team,” Park said. “Even though we didn’t perform our best, we know we are getting better with each tournament.”
Miami’s freshmen trio of Lauren Riehle, Christina Ocampo and Laura Hendee would round out the Canes’ team scoring. Riehle shot a 21-over 231 to tie for 39th, while Ocampo tied for 41st overall at 22-over 235. Hendee tied for 59th at 28-over 241.
Playing as one of two individuals for the Canes, UM’s lone upperclassmen junior Carina Cuculiza showcased her best golf of the season with a three-round score of 18-over 231, while finishing tied for 29th place. Also playing as an individual was recent Arkansas transfer and sophomore Audrey Monssoh, who placed in 81st position with a 41-over 254.
The Miami Hurricanes will continue their Sunshine State tour Feb. 10-12 at the UCF Challenge in Sorrento, Fla. For the latest information on the Miami Hurricanes women’s golf team, follow on Twitter, @hurricanesgolf.
