Sooner Athletic Conference

OCU RALLIES FOR FOURTH STRAIGHT NAIA WOMEN'S GOLF TITLE

Posted by Rich Tortorelli - Fri, May 23, 2008 - [ Women's Golf ] - Viewed 355 times

Ashley Sholer

SAN MARCOS, Calif. – Oklahoma City University rallied to capture its fourth consecutive NAIA women's golf championship Friday at Lake San Marcos Country Club.

The top-ranked Stars became the first school to win four consecutive NAIA women's golf titles, overcoming a one-stroke deficit entering the final round and a seven-shot deficit after the first.

Ashley Sholer spearheaded OCU with an 80-75-77-82–314 to tie for third place. Sholer finished six strokes behind national champion Shanna Page of Bethel (Ind.).

OCU's Laura Jones added a 78-81-80-79–318 to finish tied for ninth and earn all-tournament along with Sholer. Christina Cung shot a 79-80-79-84–322 to end in 20th.

Cung and Tamara Campbell, a senior from Lawton, Okla., became the first player to be on four NAIA women's golf championship teams. Campbell carded 86-79-84-80–329 to tie for 40th. Cung redshirted as a freshman and did not play on the Stars' 2005 championship squad.

M.J. Desbiens became NAIA coach of the year in her first season coaching OCU. She joined the Stars after eight years as an assistant at Oklahoma.

"We played great," Desbiens said. "Everybody was ready to play the final round. We put a big win on the board because we stayed patient."

The team struggled against wet greens most of the week. The challenge Friday came when it poured rain in the morning with temperatures in the 50s much of the day.

"We faced adversity," Desbiens said. "It's bad when you're soaking wet before the round begins."

Sydney Cox chipped in an 81-86-73-91–331 for the Stars. Cox and Cung were each named NAIA scholar-athletes for achieving a minimum 3.50 grade point average. Cung, a junior from Fort Worth, Texas, earned the award for the second year in a row.

The Stars finished three strokes ahead of Embry-Riddle (Fla.), the team leader entering the final round. Cal State San Marcos, which led after the first 18 holes, was in third, while British Columbia, the second-round leader, ended in fourth.

It was the tightest margin of victory ever in the NAIA women's golf championships. British Columbia beat OCU by five strokes in the 2004 event.

Lubbock Christian tied for sixth place with a 326-323-326-328–1,303. Kelly Rainbolt led Lubbock Christian with a 21st-place finish at 80-79-81-83–323.

Southern Nazarene ended in 16th led by Lillie West. West shot 81-83-84-76–324.

OCU became the third school to win four national women's golf crowns in a row, joining NCAA Division II Rollins (Fla.) and Division III Methodist (N.C.).

OCU won its 34th NAIA national championship in all sports, all since 1985-86. OCU has won a national title each year since 1994. The Stars won the men's basketball crown earlier in 2007-08.