Full Results
Becker, Minn.--Katrina Wood (Jr./Duluth, Minn./Marshall School) and Laura Knutson (Fy./Edina, Minn.) finished in a tie for sixth, finishing at 15-over par 159, and 18th-ranked Carleton College posted two of its three best 18-hole scores of the season and set the new 36-hole school scoring record at 673 in finishing third at the Minnesota Women's Collegiate Golf Association's State Championship.
Knutson and Wood earned all-state honors with their top-10 finishes, while head coach Eric Sieger was named coach of the year after the event. Knutson tallied a final-round 79 to go with her opening 80, and Wood reversed that, rallying by playing the final eight holes one-under par to record an 80 on Sunday to follow Saturday's 79. It marks the second straight season Wood earned all-state honors. Knutson, meanwhile, ended up with the school first-year 36-hole record by two shots.
The Knights, meanwhile, backed up Saturday's 338, the fourth-best 18-hole score in school history, by knocking that mark one spot down the ladder with a final-round 335. That enabled the Knights to erase a three-shot deficit on Macalester and two on St. Benedict, as Carleton edged the Scots by a single stroke for third. The 673 total bested the previous school record by four shots, set at the Small College Desert Classic in March 2005. The Knights ended up with two of the best five 18-hole scores in school history over the weekend.
Third-ranked Gustavus won the event with a highly impressive 605, believed to be a new event record. The Gusties fired a 297 in the final round, and outdistanced second-ranked St. Thomas, which finished at 646. Carleton was third, followed by Macalester (674), St. Benedict (681), and St. Olaf and St. Cloud in sixth at 693. Concordia-Moorhead ended up eighth at 699 and Augsburg ended ninth.
The Knights were able to overcome the Scots and Blazers and improve their standing thanks in large part to rookies Louise Buckler (Blaine, Minn./St. Paul Academy) and Meghan Gajare (Kalamazoo, Mich./Portage Central). Buckler shaved two shots off her first-round 89 to finish at 176, her best 36-hole total of the year, and Gajare was one shot better at 89.
"I couldn't be prouder of the team and the way we hung tough this weekend and played some pretty good golf in long stretches," Sieger said. "It was pretty cold both days and far from ideal conditions, but our players focused on what they could control. I was especially proud of Louise, who overcame a couple of really bad holes and just stayed with it mentally and was rewarded with a great final round."
Sieger was rewarded with coach of the year honors after leading a youthful Carleton team to a solid season. The Knights featured three rookies in its starting line-up, but were able to solidify themselves as a top-three team among the MWCGA attendees. [The MWCGA was created prior to many conferences in the state or the NCAA sponsoring women's golf as a championship. The event and organization gave women's golf recognition and a championship event to culminate the spring season.]
"I was pretty humbled by the selection," Sieger said. "We have a lot of very good and great teams in our area, and obviously some really outstanding coaches. It's really a testament to our players and all the hard work they've done this year and shows how coachable they are, which isn't an easy thing in golf."
The Knights have one more event on the spring schedule, the BluGold Spring Invitational on April 26-27 in Eau Claire, Wis.
