Feb. 9, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
Lady Puerto Rico Classic Notes
The Penn State women's golf team will look to start its spring season on a high note, as they will participate in the Lady Puerto Rico Classic for the second straight year. The Nittany Lions finished in 16th place there last season. The tournament is hosted by Big Ten conference foe Purdue and will be played in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. It will take place Sun.-Tues., Feb. 13-15.
"We will be playing at a different course than last year, so it will be new for my entire team," said head coach Denise St. Pierre. "The field is the strongest we have faced this season."
There will be six golfers making the trip. Sophomore Emily Ransone (Hilliard, Ohio) currently leads the team with her 75.2 strokes-per-round average. Sophomore Hanule Seo (St. Louis, Mo.) will also be in the lineup with a 76.6 average this season.
Senior Giulia Carando (Torino, Italy) and senior Gia Fanelli (West Palm Beach, Fla.) join Ransone and Seo as the only golfers who have played in every tournament for the Nittany Lions this season. Fanelli is currently third on the team with a 76.4 average. Freshmen Ellen Ceresko (Jefferson Township, Pa.) and Christina Vosters (Bethany Beach, Del.) are also making the trip. Ceresko is second on the team with a 75.6 average.
"We are excited about this opportunity to face some of the best of the best," said St. Pierre. "We realize we have to adapt to being back outside, but are confident that the hard training we have put in this winter will help us adjust."
The tournament is made up of 18 teams, including nine teams ranked in Golfweek's Top 30 and No. 1 ranked Alabama. It will be played at the par-72, 6,300-yard River Course at the Rio Mar Beach Resort in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. The tournament will consist of 54 holes with 18 holes played on each of the three days. Last year's Big Ten champion Purdue Boilermakers will be the host school. The tournament will begin with a shotgun start at 8 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 13.