Women
Three days of steady climbing up the leaderboard earned the UNM women's golf team a tie for third place at the Pioneer Electronics UCLA Bruin Classic March 24-26 in Santa Clara, Calif.
With rounds of 306-307-304-917, the Lobos finished 53 over-par and tied with Texas Tech University at the 6,254 yard, par-72 Robinson Ranch Valley Course.
Pepperdine University took home the hardware with a three-day total of 898, two strokes better than the second-place finishers, the University of Southern California.
Persistence paid off for the 13th-ranked Lobos, who were in fifth place after round one, fourth after the second round and third at the finish line.
Leading the way for UNM was junior Katrina Leckovic, who nailed down her second top-10 in as many tries this spring with a strong final-round performance. Leckovic backed up rounds of 75 and 78 with a solid 73 on day three, giving her a 10-over-par total of 226 and a tie for ninth.
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Lobo sophomore Kailin Downs started well with a 1-over-par 73, but lost the hot hand in the second two rounds. She shot 78-77 to finish tied for 15th at 12-over-par.
Sophomores Christina Spence and Shannon Johnson finished tied for 26th and tied for 59th.
This weeks third-place finish and a sixth-place result last week in South Carolina bode well for the Lobos as they head to Tempe, Ariz. for the Ping ASU Invitational April 4-6.
Men
The Lobo men will look to bounce back after disappointing performances in back-to-back events, in large part due to inconsistency from the top to the bottom of the lineup.
Things won't get any easier March 30-April 1, however, as UNM travels to Tucson, Ariz. for the National Invitational Tournament.
The first obstacle it will need to overcome is the course - at 7,148 yards and playing to a par of 72, the Omni Tucson National has been a mainstay on the PGA Tour's rotation for years.
Sophomore Jay Reynolds will be a sight for sore Lobo eyes, as he returns to the four-spot after being sidelined for over a month with a back injury.
Junior Derek Abel will also be back on the squad, after shooting 69-71 in two qualifying rounds this week. Sophomore Madalitso Muthiya and freshman Jay Choi will join Reynolds, Abel and senior Michael Letzig.
"I don't think we have much to lose after the way we've played the last two weeks," head coach Glen Millican said. "I guess it's time to shake things up."
Letzig will once again lead the Lobos into battle. Letzig has finished in the top-15 in three of four starts this spring and said that if his putter gets going, he could sneak in and win one.
