LINCOLN, Nebraska (Sept. 26, 2016) -- FIU women's golf closed the gap to within four strokes of first place after a 7-over 295 Tuesday for an overall 21-over par (302-295 597) score following round two of the Chip-N-Club Invitational, hosted by the University of Nebraska. FIU shaved seven strokes off its opening round with the third-best round of the day, four shots behind leader Kansas State and two back of South Dakota State entering tomorrow's final round at the 6,276-yard, par-72 Wilderness Ridge Golf Course in the capital city of Lincoln.
Only South Dakota State and host Nebraska posted rounds better than the Panthers, thanks to the top-four scores for the Panthers landing at three-over or better. FIU is tied for the tournament lead by posting a collective even-par score on the par-5 holes through two rounds. FIU has collected 17 birdies, second-most in the field so far.
Only five players carded a round better than did FIU freshman
Carolina Rotzinger (Puebla, Mexico), whose 1-over 73 moved her into a tie for fourth overall at 3-over par (74-73 147), a one-stroke improvement over her first collegiate round. She led all Panthers with four birdies Monday and is tied for the tournament lead on the par-5 holes by going 2-under on the longest holes.
One explanation for the improvement in scoring was the rain that hit the Lincoln on Saturday for the practice round. The team played six holes before rain washed out the rest of the round, leaving the team with limited course information.
"I had to play too conservatively yesterday," said Rotzinger. "Today, I knew the course better so I was able to play more strategically and knew where to hit to be more aggressive, so I could make more birdies.
"I think I'm hitting my irons solid and everything is working for me, I just haven't been able to really take advantage of that in order to get a lower score, but I feel confident with myself that I have everything I need to post a lower round for tomorrow."
FIU's leader, senior
Camila Serrano (Bogota, Columbia), has only one score better than hers on the leaderboard. Her two-over 74 puts her at two-over-par (72-74 146) for the tournament. She is one stroke back of leader Hallie Getz of South Dakota State, in a two-way tie for second place. She birdied two holes on the front nine and had four bogeys overall for her second round. She is even par on the par-4 holes, with Getz the only player under par on those holes in the field.
Junior
Katerina Krasova (Ricany, Czech Republic) also posted a 1-over 73 and is tied for 11
th at 5-over (76-73 149). She had 11 pars, three birdies and four bogeys for a steady second round.
The top-three teams (Kansas State, South Dakota State and FIU) are paired together on the first four holes I the final round, which will feature a shotgun format, beginning at 9:45 a.m. Eastern.
Live results for the final two rounds can be found at FIUSports.com.
#######
About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports, and is a proud member of Conference USA. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and the FIU Football Stadium.
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $9.8 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
