March 27, 2012

Final results

University of Montana golf team shot 321 in the third and final round to finish in 10th place at the Anteater Invitational in Dove Canyon, Calif., Tuesday. Montana shot 314 and 315 in rounds one and two to end with a 54-hole score of 950.

Senior Ashli Helstrom led the Grizzlies shooting 78 in round one and following that up with back-to-back 77's to close out the tournament. Helstrom finished in 21st place.

"I was really excited for Ashli's finish," said coach Emily Milberger. "She has been putting in a lot of work and it's paying off for her."

Junior Olivia Weber (77-79-79) finished in 35th place with a 235 mark followed by Lauren Howell (82-77-81--240) who ended the tournament tied in 47th place.

Washington State led from start to finish with a 54-hole score of 904 (299-297-308) and was led by medalist Mallory Kent who won the individual title with a score of 220 (71-75-74). Brigham Young shot the lowest round Tuesday with a 302, but could not catch the Cougars after a three-round total of 910.

Montana finished three strokes behind conference rival Portland State at 947 (316-313-318) and 12 strokes behind Sacramento State at 938 (316-314-308). The Hornets and the Vikings finished in eighth and ninth place respectively.

"We had some challenges today but I applaud the team for continuing to fight hard all the way to the end," continued Milberger. "It took a lot of character to keep battling even when things weren't going our way."

Montana will participate in the Wyoming Cowgirl Classic Apr. 9-11 before competing in the Big Sky Conference Championships Apr. 22-24.