April 26, 2011

Interviews

EAST LANSING, Mich. - After winning the 2011 Big Ten Championships over the weekend, the Michigan State women's golf team was honored with individual awards on Tuesday, as the Big Ten announced its all-conference selections. Senior Aimee Neff and sophomore Caroline Powers were both named to the All-Big Ten First Team, while junior Lindsey Solberg garnered second-team accolades. In addition, Neff was honored as MSU's Sportsmanship Award recipient.

This marks the first time in her career that Neff has made the first team after being named a second-team All-Big Ten selection the past three seasons. Neff is averaging a career-best 75.19 this season and is ranked No. 71 in the nation according to Golfweek. The Carmel, Ind., native placed a season-high fourth at the Lady Buckeye Invitational on April 17 and tied for 19th at last weekend's Big Ten Championships. It also marks the third time in her career that she has been named MSU's honoree for the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.

Powers has led the Spartans all season long in scoring average and her current average of 73.84 is on pace to set an MSU single-season record, which is currently held by Laura Kueny, who shot a 73.85 last season. Powers was the top finisher on the team at the Big Ten Championships by taking fourth, which landed her a spot on the All-Championships Team. She is ranked 30th by Golfweek and has placed in the top 10 in four of her tournaments this season, including a first-place finish at the Lady Buckeye Invitational on April 17.

This marks the second time Solberg has been named second-team All-Big Ten in her career, as she also earned the honor her freshman season. Solberg's best tournament of the season came at the Big Ten Championships, as she placed a season-high fifth to make the All-Championships Teams. She led the team with six birdies in the final round, including three on the final four holes, to help lead the Spartans past Purdue for their ninth Big Ten title in school history.

Michigan State earned a No. 6 seed in the NCAA East Regional and will compete May 5-7 at the Legends Course at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla. The top-eight teams in each of the three regionals advance to the NCAA Championships May 17-20 at the Traditions Club in Bryan, Texas. This marks the 13th consecutive year Michigan State has earned a berth in the postseason.

2011 BIG TEN WOMEN'S GOLF ALL-CONFERENCE AND INDIVIDUAL AWARD WINNERS

ALL-BIG TEN
First Team
Aimee Neff, Michigan State
Caroline Powers, Michigan State
Lauren Weaver, Northwestern
Laura Gonzalez-Escallon, Purdue
Numa Gulyanamitta, Purdue
Paula Reto, Purdue

Second Team
Lindsay Gahm, Indiana
Lindsey Solberg, Michigan State
Rachel Rohanna, Ohio State
Vicky Villanueva, Ohio State
Thea Hoffmeister, Purdue
Maude-Aimee LeBlanc, Purdue

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Numa Gulyanamitta, Purdue

FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Lindsay Gahm, Indiana

CO-COACH OF THE YEAR
Emily Fletcher, Northwestern
Todd Oehrlein, Wisconsin

SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD HONOREES
Kaitlyn Wampler, Illinois Kristtini Cain, Indiana Laura Cilek, Iowa Min Yean Tan, Michigan Aimee Neff, Michigan State
Teresa Puga, Minnesota Rebecca Lederhausen, Northwestern In Hong Lim, Ohio State Hanule Seo, Penn State Paula Reto, Purdue Carly Werwie, Wisconsin