Kelli Ann Strand tied the school 54-hole tournament record with a 202 (-14) to win the individual title and lead the Nebraska women’s golf team to a runner-up finish at the season-opening Green Wave Classic in New Orleans on Tuesday.
Strand, a true freshman from Challis, Idaho, produced rounds of 67 and 64 on Monday, before adding a final-round 70 on Tuesday to claim the individual crown and match Husker All-American Kate Smith’s school-record 202 at the Westbrook Spring Invitational in Peoria, Ariz. (Feb. 25-26, 2018).
Strand, who fired a 29 (-7) over the back nine in Monday’s second round, opened with a 31 (-5) on the front nine Tuesday morning to take firm control of the individual leaderboard. She hit the turn to the back at 17-under-par through 45 holes, after playing the back nine at 11-under two rounds Monday. However, she ran into trouble on No. 10 in the final round, taking her only double-bogey of the tournament. She quickly recovered with a birdie on No. 11, but it was her only birdie on the back nine to go along with five pars and two bogeys on Tuesday.
The team race came down to the wire, with LSU overtaking the Huskers on the back nine to claim a three-stroke victory. Nebraska was unable to come away with the team title despite shattering the school record with an 835 (-29) team score over three rounds. The performance by the Huskers smashed the previous team mark of 843 at the 2018 Westbrook Spring Invitational.
“We fought really hard all the way to the very end,” Nebraska Head Coach Jeanne Sutherland said. “Kelli Ann played some phenomenal golf. Her presence on the course was really good and she did a great job of just staying in the moment and not letting anything get to big for her. It was also great to see Megan Whittaker and Lindsey Thiele play such solid golf for three rounds. I got to just sit back and watch some great golf this week. Our players competed and trained really hard to prepare for the tournament and I was able to just let them play and not worry too much about how they were playing throughout the tournament. We definitely had some real positives coming out of our first tournament and we have some good things to build on as we move forward.”
LSU won the Green Wave Classic team championship with a three-round total of 832 (-32). LSU’s Latanna Stone finished as the runner-up to Strand with a 204 (-12), while Tiger teammates Taylor Riley and Anna Donegan tied for third at 206 (-10). Riley made the biggest move up the leaderboard for LSU on Tuesday with her final-round 65 (-7). Tulsa’s Lilly Thomas added a 206 of her own to join a three-way tie for third.
Nebraska fifth-year golfer Megan Whittaker enjoyed a record-setting tournament of her own, taking sixth place individually with a career-best 207 (-9). Whittaker closed the tournament with a 70 (-2) after rounds of 70 and 67 on Monday. The Elkhorn, Neb., native’s sixth-place finish matched her career best, while her 207 was four strokes better than her previous career-best 54-hole score, which came at the 2022 Westbrook Spring Invitational. Her second-round 67 (-5) on Monday was also a career best.
Fellow Nebraskan Lindsey Thiele (Wahoo, Neb.) put up record numbers as well, finishing in a tie for eighth with a career-best 209 (-7). Thiele matched Strand and Whittaker with a final-round 70 (-2) on Tuesday after opening with a career-best 69 (-3) in Monday’s first round, before closing the first day of the tournament with a 70.
Sophomore Miu Takahashi (Japan) rounded out Nebraska’s team score on Tuesday with a final-round 72. She and fellow sophomore Andrea Velez (Colombia) ended the tournament in a tie for 35th with career-best scores of 218 (+2).
The Huskers return to action at the Badger Invitational in Madison, Wis., Sept. 18-20.
Green Wave Classic
New Orleans, Louisiana
Bayou Oaks South Course (Par 72, 6,158 Yards)
September 12-13, 2022
Final Team Results
T1. LSU – 278-275-279=832 (-32)
2. Nebraska – 278-275-282=835 (-29) – school-record score
3. Tulsa – 276-282-280=838 (-26)
4. Tulane – 288-282-284=854 (-10)
5. Incarnate Word – 294-281-280=855 (-9)
6. South Florida – 282-286-289=857 (-7)
7. Mercer – 296-280-287=863 (-1)
8. Central Arkansas – 290-289-290=869 (+2)
9. Sam Houston – 293-289-288=870 (+6)
10. Seattle – 288-298-296=882 (+18)
11. Chattanooga – 298-291-296=885 (+21)
12. Little Rock – 300-290-297=887 (+23)
13. Northern Colorado – 301-303-290=894 (+30)
14. UNC Asheville – 302-306-307=915 (+51)
Final Individual Results
1. Kelli Ann Strand, Nebraska – 67-65-70=202 (-14) (ties school record)
2. Latanna Stone, LSU – 68-67-69=204 (-12)
T3. Lilly Thomas, Tulsa – 69-72-65=204 (-10)
T3. Taylor Riley, LSU – 69-68-69=206 (-10)
T3. Aine Donegan, LSU – 67-68-71=206 (-10)
6. Megan Whittaker, Nebraska – 70-67-70=207 (-9)
7. Camila Jarvela, Mercer – 72-69-67=208 (-8)
T8. Dorota Zalewska, Chattanooga – 72-68-69=209 (-7)
T8. Lindsey Thiele, Nebraska – 69-70-70=209 (-7)
T8. Grace Kilcrease, Tulsa – 69-69-71=209 (-7)
Nebraska Individuals
1. Kelli Ann Strand – 67-65-70=202 (-14)
6. Megan Whittaker – 70-67-70=207 (-9)
T8. Lindsey Thiele – 69-70-70=209 (-7)
T35. Miu Takahashi – 72-74-72=218 (+2)
T35. Andrea Velez – 72-73-73=218 (+2)
*T72. Lena Hassert – 81-74-77=155 (+16)
* competing as an individual outside Nebraska’s lineup
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