Frogs’ spring season improves as team moves to No. 17 in rankings

By Colleen Casey
Skiff Staff

At the end of the tournament portion of the spring season, head women’s golf coach Angie Ravaioli-Larkin said the team feels fortunate to be playing as well as they are.

The Frogs have quickly climbed to No. 17 in the MasterCard Collegiate Golf Rankings after a less than productive fall season.

“We couldn’t just start over,” Ravaioli-Larkin said. “We had to earn the points and beat good teams in order to get to where we are now. At the beginning of the year, we wouldn’t have been satisfied (with being No. 17).”

The spring season has spotlighted the team’s depth with four players ranked in the top 100 in the country.
“It’s like a totally different season,” Ravaioli-Larkin said. “Each person is capable of (scoring) low because there’s no pressure, and they can play freely.”

The team recently placed third out of 15 participating schools at the Ping/ASU Invitational in Tempe, Ariz. Sophomore Shannon Barr, who is currently ranked No. 76, tied for third in the tournament with a three-round score of 218. Barr and junior Jennifer Patterson were both named Western Athletic Conference Golfers of the Week earlier this season.

The ASU Invitational was the last regular season tournament for the Frogs before they play at the WAC Championships April 22 to 25 at the Golf Course at Chapel Hills in Dallas.

The women practiced at Chapel Hills during Spring Break and team members said they are excited to go back and play it again.

Ravaioli-Larkin said the team liked the course and the golfers feel it’s a good length and has a great lay out.
Last year at the WAC Championships, TCU finished second behind Tulsa, which had beaten the Frogs the past two years.

Ravaioli-Larkin said beating Tulsa and getting to put on championship rings are the top priorities for each golfer right now.

This year’s squad has more depth than last year’s because each golfer has focused on improving herself as an individual, Ravaioli-Larkin said.

With leadership from freshman Courtney Wood, who is ranked No. 60, and seniors Brenda Anderson and Amy Sands, this season’s strong leaders are difficult to pinpoint, Ravaioli-Larkin said.

If the Frogs’ successful spring season continues, Ravaioli-Larkin said her team can give Anderson, a member of the 1998 WAC championship team, a second championship.

Colleen Casey
c.m.casey@student.tcu.edu