March 9, 2008

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BYRON, Texas - For the second -consecutive tournament, the No. 22 Michigan State women's golf team paced themselves from the field to win the "Mo"Morial Tournament, hosted by Texas A&M University at the Traditions Club in Byron, Texas. The Spartans, who shot a 67-over par 931, topped the of nine of the top-50 schools in the country by nine strokes, led by an one-two finish on top of the individual leaderboard by senior Sara Brown and freshman Aimee Neff. Like the team, Brown has now won back-to-back tournament titles by large margins, coming in today at five-over 221 over the weekend's three rounds.

"It's nice to win two straight tournaments," said head coach Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll. "We played well today and were able to separate ourselves from the very talented field. The course demands a lot of great shots and allows no room for error. Sara (Brown) and Aimee (Neff) played great today. They seemed to make quality shots on every shot. When you are playing like that, regardless of the conditions, you will hit the ball where you want it to be."

The tournament, which had its opening round delayed due to inclement weather on Friday and his second round halted last night due to darkness, was concluded today with the last few holes of the second round and the entire third round.

Michigan State wrapped up its second round with a 26-over par 314 and posted the best round of any school this weekend in the third round with a 16-over par 304. No. 17 Denver placed second, nine shots back at 76-over par 940, and Tulsa was third with a 92-over par 956. No. 18 Kent State and the No. 23 Aggies were tied for fourth, 31 strokes off the MSU pace, at 98-over par 962.

It is the Spartans' third team title of the season - having previously won the Mary Fossum Invitational and the Central District Invitational, marking the most wins in a season since the 2001-02 team also won three tournaments.

Brown won an individual title for the second-straight week by a large margin. Her five-over 221 (78-70-73) total was eight strokes ahead of the field which included 13 of the top-100 golfers in the country. Brown, coming off a seven shot win at the CDI and a trio of weekly honors in her last outing, wrapped up the final three holes in her second round today with two pars and a birdie, for a two-under par 70. She used that momentum to hold steady and pull away from the other golfers with a third round one-over 73. After a birdie-less opening round (78), the Tucson, Ariz. native posted seven birdies over her final 36 holes. Brown has been the top Spartan finisher in each of the three tournaments this spring.

Neff, recovered from a high-scoring second round, to tie for second with Denver's Stephanie Sherlock at 13-over 239 (74-86-69). After wrapping up her second round 13-over 85, which dropped her into a tie for 13th after 36 holes, Neff responded with the only round in the 60s by any golfer this weekend, a three-under 69, to move her back up the leaderboard. Her closing round included four birdies, which brought her three round total to a team-high eight birdies. The finish is a career-high and marks her third top-10 finish this season.

"I feel Aimee's final round today made the difference for us," said Slobodnik-Stoll. "There were so few rounds in the 70s, so when she was able to come out and score in the 60s, it really put us in good shape. She was able to strike the ball well and make the shots that she needed to."

Senior Jordyn Wells moved into the top-20 on Sunday with a eight-over 80, for a three-round total of 26-over par 242 (81-81-80). She tied for 19th overall, having birdied her final two holes in her third round (the first and second holes).

Sophomore Laura Kueny and junior individual Holly Niederkohr were in a bunch tied for 27th at 30-over 246. Niederkohr fired rounds of 84, 80 and 82, while Kueny carded an 80, 81 and 85. Freshman Michelle Bowles, the final member of the MSU starting five, tied for 32nd with a 31-over 247 (83-82-82). Redshirt sophomore Jen Domagalski, also playing as an individual, tied for 61st at 45-over 261 (88-83-90).

Michigan State looks for three-straight titles on March 28-30 at the Bryan National Collegiate Tournament in Browns Summit, N.C.