Laccey Agnew led Florida State to a second place finish at the Cougar Classic.

Agnew leads Seminoles in first event of fall season.

Sept. 14, 2009

HANAHAN, S.C. - The Florida State women's golf team finished in second place in the team standings and Seminole senior Lacey Agnew finished in second place in the individual standings as play in the Cougar Classic at Yeamans Hall Golf Course came to a close today. With three of its five golfers finishing below par in the final round, the Seminoles finished only seven strokes behind team champion Georgia and ahead of ACC foes North Carolina (third), Maryland (ninth) and NC State (11th).

The finish for Florida State was its best since winning the championship at the LSU/Cleveland Golf Classic in the spring of 2008 while the runner-up individual placing marked a career-best finish for Agnew. The Seminoles carded the best team score of the final round - a six-under par 282 - to finish comfortably in second place. Florida State finished 12 strokes ahead of third-place North Carolina.

Agnew (Jonesboro, Ga.) finished with a career-best seven-under par score of 209 as she closed the event with a one over par 73. It was her first round over par during the three round event as she carded a 71 in the first round and a school record tying 65 in the second round. Agnew established career bests for single-round score (65), 36-hole score (136), three-round tournament score (209) and finish (second) as she played the best tournament of her four-year Seminole career. She finished only one stroke behind the individual winner Marta Silva Zamora of Georgia.

With three birdies and 11 holes of par during the final round, Agnew was masterful during the entire tournament. She nearly moved into a tie for first place over the final four holes with birdies on 15 and 18 but fell one hole short of the first individual championship of her career. She was solid through the 54-hole event as she was as many as seven strokes under par during the second round and never more than two strokes over during any time during the event.

"I felt like I was swinging my clubs really well this week," said Agnew. "I got off to a slow start yesterday but was able to finish well both days. I feel like I put myself in great positions all weekend by hitting the greens and I continued to drop putts.

"We really worked hard as a team this weekend," continued Agnew. "It was great to see everyone cheering for one another throughout the event. I'm really looking forward to helping us continue to improve as a team because I know we can have a great year. This is a great start for us and we just have to continue to work hard and get better."

Freshman Jessica Negron (Ocala, Fla.) earned the best individual score of the final round as she carded a four-under par 68 to finish with a two-over par total of 218 and in a tie for 16th place. She earned six birdies in the third round including three over the course of her final seven holes to move to four-under par. Negron began the final round in a tie for 45th place and moved up 29 spots in the individual standings with her play in the final round.

Junior Macarena Silva (Santiago, Chile) finished in a tie for 10th place in the individual standings with a three-round total of one-under par 215. She cared a two-under par 70 in the final round and was three under par over the final two rounds with a 71 in the second round and a 70 in the third round. Silva's finish marked her fourth top 15 individual finish in her last five events dating back to the spring of 2009.

Silva was under par for 17 of the 18 holes after earning a birdie on her second hole of the round. With four birdies during the round she moved to as many as three strokes under par before finishing with a two-under par score of 70.

Sophomore Hannah Thomson (Perth, Australia) also closed well as she shot a one-under par 71 in the final round. She, too, finished in a tie for 16th place with a two-over total of 218. Thomson established personal bests for single-round score (71), 36-hole score (147), tournament scored (218) and finish (tied for 16th). The finish was the first top 20 finish of her Seminole career.

"The team has worked hard and practiced hard so we are happy to see it pay off under pressure," said head coach Debbie Dillman. "We beat some really good teams this week and also feel like we left plenty of shots on the golf course. The (Florida State) men set the bar high by winning their first event. We came close to winning today as we made up six of the 12 shots we trailed Georgia by at the start of the day.

"I'm so proud of Lacey's performance," said Dillman. "It's exciting to see her break out her career best round at the start of her senior year. She handled the heat like a veteran and was a great anchor for our team. Our freshman also played exceptionally well. Mary Beth had two great opening rounds. Jessica had a great third round and had an eagle in her first round. Hannah and Maca played well and were solid throughout the tournament."

The Seminoles continue their fall season at the Lady Wildcat Invitational at the University of Kentucky Sept. 25-27.

Cougar Fall Classic/Sept. 13-14, 2009/Par 72
Yeamans Hall Golf Course/Hanahan, S.C./Final FSU Results
2/18.  Florida State      292   283   282  857
2.     Lacey Agnew        71    65    73   209
T10.   Macarena Silva     74    71    70   215
T16.   Jessica Negron     75    75    68   218
T16.   Hannah Thomson     73    74    71   218
T51.   Mary Beth Ramsay   74    73    80   227

Cougar Fall Classic/Sept. 13-14, 2009/Par 72 Yeamans Hall Golf Course
Hanahan, S.C./Final Team Results
1.   Georgia         850  10.   Charleston        891
2.   Florida State   857  11.   NC State          893
3.   North Carolina  869  12.   USF               896
4.   Tennessee       872  13.   UNC Greensboro    905
5.   Furman          873  14.   Ole Miss          910
6.   Wisconsin       878  15.   Mississippi St.   916
7.   Vanderbilt      881  16.   Miami             921
8.   Texas           886  17.   Richmond          935
9.   Maryland        887  18.   Charleston South  953