Despite two inches of snow in Sunriver, Ore., that caused a change of venue and delayed starting time for the Mountain West Conference women's golf championship, the Lobos are poised for a true rarity in sports - a four-peat.
The fate of Thursday's first round was still up in the air at about 11 a.m. as the Sunriver Resort's Meadows course had yet to thaw.
"Our attitude is just let us play anywhere," Lobo head coach Jackie Booth said before the conference committee had decided when and where the tournament woule be played. "We just want to win this thing,"
About an hour later, the committee decided to move the tournament to the Ambrey Glen Golf Course, about 15 miles away in Bend, Ore.
The Lobos have dominated the MWC championship, amassing a list of records in the last three years longer than a John Daly drive. They own the low 18, 36 and 54-hole totals in the event's history. As a member of the Western Athletic Conference, UNM pulled off the four-peat, winning from 1993-96.
"Our goal is to break all those records," Booth said.
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Eighteenth-ranked Kailin Downs, tops among the nation's sophomores, will lead the Lobos into battle. Downs, who should walk away with MWC Player of the Year honors has finished fourth six times this season, including her last start at the Ping/ASU Invitational two weeks ago. She also finished fourth at last year's MWC championship.
Joining the super-sophomore are junior Katrina Leckovic, sophomore Shannon Johnson, sophomore Christina Spence and junior Kellyn Newman. Leckovic and Johnson also scored top-10 at the conference tournament last year.
The 12th-ranked and highly favored Lobos should get their stiffest competition from the UNLV Runnin' Rebels, Booth said.
"They gave us a good run for our money on their home course," she said. "They can definitely play."
Booth added that recent high winds and cold weather in Albuquerque have made her squad tough and ready to handle whatever conditions arise.
"We're definitely the team to beat," she said. "We'll be really disappointed if we don't win. That's why we came here."
