April 25, 2008

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Freshman Kelsey Lindenschmidt (West Chester, Ohio/Ursuline Academy) put together a seven-over 151 (75-76), good enough for a 15th-place tie as Northwestern shares seventh place following the first two rounds of the Big Ten Championships. NU put together a 37-over 613 (306-307) through the first day of competition and sits tied with the host Nittany Lions after 36 holes.

Lindenschmidt shot a team-best 75 through the first 18 holes and followed it up with a 76 in round two. She leads fellow freshman Rebecca Lederhausen (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central) by one stroke after Lederhausen shot a pair of 76's to finish with an eight-over 152 after day one, good enough for a tie for 22nd. Junior Jennifer Hong (Windermere, Fla./The First Academy) sits third in the NU team standings after carding a 10-over 154 (78-76).

The three Wildcat seniors round out the scoring for Northwestern, as Brittany Johnston (Akron, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) shot an 18-over 162 (77-85), one stroke better than teammate Katie Trachok's (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair) 19-over 163 (84-79). Justina Yu (Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman) finished the first day at 23-over 167 (85-82).

Northwestern found itself in a fourth-place tie with Indiana after shooting a 306 in round one. But it slipped back to its current seventh-place tie after four schools shot sub-300 rounds on the second 18 holes.

Sixth-ranked Purdue leads at the halfway point with a 10-over 586 (298-288), holding a nine-stroke cushion over defending champion Michigan State after the Spartans put togther a 19-over 595 (292-303). Ohio State (24-over 600), Wisconsin (30-over 606) and Indiana (32-over 608) round out the top five with Michigan (36-over 612) holding a one-stroke advantage over both the Wildcats and Nittany Lions.

Round three gets underway at 8 a.m. CT with the first 'Cat teeing off at 8:45. Complete team and individual standings and live scoring of the Big Ten Championships are available at Golfstat.com.