Bal, Thiry lead Jayhawks to Tie for Second Place at Chip n Club

Senior Grace Thiry tied for fourth at the 2010 Chip N Club Invitational.

Sept. 14, 2010

LINCOLN, Neb.—Kansas seniors Meghna Bal and Grace Thiry overcame weather delays to finish tied for fourth place individually at the 2010 Chip N Club Invitational. The Jayhawks tied for second place overall with Kansas State at 599 strokes on Tuesday. KU finished just one stroke behind first place Arkansas State.

Bal and Thiry each finished at four over par with two round scores of 148. Bal posted rounds of 72 and 76 while Thiry carded rounds of 75 and 73.

"I had fun while playing and was very relaxed," said Bal. "I am super excited about my eagle. I made it a goal to be positive no matter what."

The event was shortened to just two rounds after weather suspended play midway through round two on Monday.

“All the golfers played really solid,” said head coach Erin O’Neil. “The five in the line-up finished in the top 25. I’m very pleased with how we played. We were definitely in the hunt and that’s where you want to be.”

All five Jayhawks broke 80 in both rounds. Katy Nugent finished tied for 16th at 152 while Fhong Boonraksasat and Jennifer Clark tied for 23rd at 154.

“We had two eagles today which is unique,” said O’Neil. “Meghna hit in the hole from 104 yards away. Maria (Jackson) hit it in the hole from 150 yards out.”

Audrey Yowell and Jackson competed as individuals finishing 75th and tied for 78^th, respectively. Yowell turned in rounds of 80 and 83 while Jackson finished with rounds of 88 and 77.

“I wish we could have gotten that last round in,” O’Neil said. “The weather was a lot better this morning, but yesterday the organizers didn’t think that we would be able to finish the second round today due to the forecast.”

Kansas’ next competition will be the Marilynn Smith Invitational Tournament, hosted by the Jayhawks, at Alvamar Country Club September 27-28.

2010 Chip-N Club Invitational

Monday, Sept. 13-Tuesday, Sept. 14

Wilderness Ridge Golf Course (Lincoln, Neb.)

Par 72, 6,238 Yards

Team Results (Final)

1. Arkansas State - 306-292-598

T2. Kansas - 300-299-599

T2. Kansas State - 299-300-599

4. UTSA - 294-310-604

T5. Texas State - 305-312-617

T5. Missouri - 313-304-617

T7. Iowa - 308-310-618

T7. Akron - 309-309-618

9. James Madison - 306-316-622

10. Central Arkansas - 301-322-623

11. South Dakota State - 314-311-625

12. North Dakota State - 314-312-626

13. Nebraska - 314-313-627

14. Sacramento State - 316-317-633

15. Creighton - 325-321-646

Individual Leaders

1. Amy Anderson (North Dakota State) - 71-73-144

2. Paige Osterloo (Kansas State) - 74-71-145

3. Anna Carling (Arkansas State) - 72-74-146

T4. Meghna Bal (Kansas) - 72-76-148

T4. Grace Thiry (Kansas) - 75-73-148

T4. Laura Cilek (Iowa) - 74-74-148

T4. Taylor Newlin (UTSA) - 70-78-148

T8. Ami Storey (Kansas State) - 74-75-149

T8. Whitney Pyle (Kansas State) - 73-76-149

10. Krista Puisite (Texas State) - 79-71-150

Kansas Individuals

T4. Meghna Bal – 72-76-148

T4. Grace Thiry – 75-73-148

T16. Katy Nugent – 79-73-152

T23. Fhong Boonraksasat – 76-78-154

T23. Jennifer Clark – 77-77-154

75. Audrey Yowell – 80-83-163

T78. Maria Jackson – 88-77-165