Montana
Washington State Cougar Cup
Griz close with a 305, finish fourth
9/23/2014 12:00:00 AM | Golf
Results
Montana shot a final-round 305 Tuesday to finish fourth at the Washington State Cougar Cup at the Palouse Ridge Golf Course in Pullman, Wash.
After shooting rounds of 297 and 294 on Monday, the Grizzlies were one of seven teams in the nine-school field to shoot 302 or higher on a day the winds changed the nature of the golf course.
Only tournament champion Washington State, at 297, and runner-up BYU, at 296, were able to break 300 Tuesday.
"We had different conditions today, so it made for a different golf course. There was a lot more wind," said UM coach Joni Stephens. "Some of the holes we'd been hitting short irons, we were hitting woods into. It made for a more challenging day for sure."
Sophomores Barbora Bakova and Amanda Kahn both shot 2-over 74s, and senior Tara Green carded a 77. Junior Phoebe Tan shot an 80, meaning Montana had to count a score in the 80s for the first time in its last seven rounds.
"I'm mostly pleased with how we handled things today," added Stephens. "I told the girls afterwards that we struggled today, but when we shoot 305 in a struggle round, we're moving in the right direction."
Bakova (70-71-74) tied for fourth at 1-under for the tournament. She finished two shots out of second and five shots off the winning score posted by Washington State's Nani Yanagi (71-69-70).
Monday's leader, Kristen Rue of Washington State, shot a final-round 76 and finished third.
Montana's breakout performance came from Kahn, whose best round as a freshman was 75 and whose best tournament total last year was 235. She posted consistent rounds of 75-74-74 this week to total a 223 and was at even par Tuesday before bogeying two of the last four holes. She tied for 12th at 7-over.
"Amanda told us afterwards that this was her best tournament ever. It was certainly her best college tournament," Stephens said. "She played some really solid golf and was close today to having a round at even or below par."
Green (76-77-77) and freshman Hailey Hoagland (76-72-82) tied for 30th, Tan (78-77-80) tied for 43rd.
Washington State (285-285-297) finished 3-over for the tournament and won the title by 16 strokes over BYU (297-290-296). Defending Big Sky Conference champion Portland State (296-295-303) edged Montana by two strokes, and the Grizzlies finished one shot ahead of fifth-place Idaho (289-297-311).
Montana will play its fourth consecutive Monday-Tuesday tournament next week when the Grizzlies travel to Aurora, Ore., for the 14-team Rose City Collegiate.
"So far this fall we've gone seventh, sixth and now fourth," said Stephens. "We still have some little things where we occasionally give up unnecessary strokes, but for the most part I'm very pleased with the work everyone is doing and how it's starting to pay off on the golf course."
Players Mentioned
