April 22, 2005

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Battling less-than-ideal weather conditions, Northwestern's 43rd-ranked women's golf team posted a 46-over 622 (310-312) on Friday, good enough for a fifth-place standing at this year's Big Ten Championships.

The Wildcats, who entered the tourney as the fifth seed, are nine strokes behind Michigan and Purdue (both at +37) and three strokes in front of Iowa (+49). Ohio State, the defending Big Ten champion, has a comfortable 19-stroke advantage over Michigan State.

With a snow storm predicted for eastern Michigan on Saturday and Saturday night, the teams will begin at 8 a.m. CT with a shotgun start.

Northwestern senior Ina Kim (Encino, Calif./Harvard-Westlake) leads the 'Cats' contingent with a 7-over 151 (74-77). She is tied for seventh place, five strokes back of Ohio State's Kristen White. White is one of three Buckeyes holding down the first three spots in the individual standings. A fourth OSU player, Dana Je, is tied with Kim and Michigan's Brianna Broderick.

Sophomore Alice Kim (Los Angeles, Calif./Brentwood) is in 16th place with a 12-over 156 (79-77). Two other sophomores, Kelly Robb (Concord, Mass./Middlesex School) and Heather Scholten (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian), are in 25th place with 14-over 158's.

The 11 teams played Friday's first 36 holes in temperatures that hovered just over 40 degrees. Light rain affected the field in the afternoon.

Live scoring and results are available for the tournament by linking to Big Ten Women's Golf Championships. Other tournament information can be found at Big Ten Women's Golf and Michigan Women's Golf.