April 13, 2008

LEWISBURG, Pa. -- It's championship time for the Bucknell women's golfers, who will try to keep the momentum going from last week's record-setting showing in Oklahoma as the Big South Championship gets underway Monday at The Patriot Club at Grand Harbor in Ninety-Six, S.C.

Bison Women's Golf Notebook

More on this Week -
- This will be Bucknell's sixth appearance in the Big South Championship. Previously, the Bison finished sixth in 2003 and 2004, fifth in 2005 and 2006, and seventh last season when several members of the team battled the flu.
- Tournament host Coastal Carolina, the 2007 runner-up, is the No. 1 seed based on its current Golfweek national ranking of 95, the highest among the seven Big South women's golf programs. Winthrop, which finished third in last year's championship, is ranked 113th in the nation by Golfweek and received the No. 2 seed. Charleston Southern (142) is the No. 3 seed, followed by Radford (178), Bucknell (181), High Point (202) and Holy Cross (220). In addition, future Big South member Presbyterian College will participate in the event, but will not count in the overall team and individual standings.
- The Patriot Club is hosting the Big South Women's Golf Championship for the second time, as the course hosted the 2005 event that was won by Coastal Carolina. Bucknell shot a then-school-record 315 in the first round that year and ended up in fifth place (315-324-331).
- In 2005 at The Patriot, then-freshman Amy Loughney shot 77-76-76 to finish T-5th and earn All-Big South Honors. Kristen Phalen was also in the lineup that year and shot 77-77-90 to finish T-22nd.
- Loughney, Phalen, Emily Chiodo, Deirdre Moran and Katie Jurenovich will comprise coach Kevin Jamieson's lineup this week.
- The teams played a practice round on Sunday, then the 54-hole championship will consist of 18 holes Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The champion will receive the Big South's automatic berth to the NCAA Regionals.

About the Bison in 2007-08 -
- Bucknell is coming off last weekend's stellar 316-308-319 showing at the Susie Maxwell Berning Classic, hosted by Oklahoma. The Bison broke school records for 18, 36 and 54 holes, while Chiodo and Phalen both tied the individual 18-hole record with rounds of 1-over 73.
- Loughney has had tremendous success at the Big South Championship. In addition to her T-5th finish as a freshman, she was T-11th in 2006, missing all-conference honors by one shot, and T-10th last season to earn her second All-Big South medal. Loughney's career scoring average at the Big South Championship is 77.1.
- Phalen's 83-75-73 showing in Oklahoma last week lowered her 2007-08 scoring average to 82.0, which ranks 20th in the Big South. Chiodo (80.5) and Jurenovich (80.6) rank 16th and 17th, respectively.
- Chiodo has the team's top spring average of 80.3.
- Bucknell's team average this spring is now 324.3.