Vandermade fueled by Women's Golf team success
Dec. 20, 2011
Justin Perez, Texas Media Relations AUSTIN, Texas -- The rise of Texas Women's Golf starts with senior Nicole Vandermade. She was head coach Martha Richards' initial recruit to the Forty Acres in 2008, and now a senior on a Texas team ranked 10th in the country. With victories in two out of their past four tournaments, the Longhorns are quickly gaining momentum toward serious runs at the Big 12 and national championships. Vandermade, ranked No. 7 in the country, has been the key performer for UT all season, beginning with a third place finish at the Texas A&M "Mo" Morial Tournament in which the Longhorns took the team victory. "I had a good end of the (last year), and the summer," Vandermade said. "And that gave me some momentum coming into (new school season), and then I was able to have a really good finish at the A&M tournament." Vandermade's finish in the opening tournament was just a sign to come. As the Longhorns posted a 12-stroke team victory at the Austin-hosted Betsy Rawls Longhorn Invitational, Vandermade bettered teammate Madison Pressel by one stroke at 2-under par to claim the individual crown. "I know I've been working hard and that I've seen improvements in my game which had to come all together at one time," Vandermade said. "It's just really special to have it come together at one time at our home tournament with both of my parents there and they were able to watch it too." As a team, the Longhorns, winners of last spring's Big 12 Championships, also finished fifth overall at the Windy City Classic, and then followed that up with a 10th place finish in the Stanford Intercollegiate Tournament.
The highlight of the season, though, remains the top-to-bottom team strength at Betsy Rawls, and all of this team success has also provided personal validation for Vandermade. She had the opportunity to pursue her LPGA tour card at the qualifying tournament, but that move would have also ended her college eligibility. "I just love it here, and I want to keep going with my team and win nationals and win another Big 12 championship," Vandermade said. "I want to complete my four years here because I made my commitment to Texas, and I love it here and I want to fulfill that commitment." Vandermade feels like the momentum from the fall should carry over into the spring, but only through focus and hard work. "This offseason has been nice because we've been able to celebrate and think back to how good of a fall that we had and realize how good it felt to be winning," Vandermade said. "That has made everyone motivated this offseason to work hard and make sure that we keep improving ourselves so that we have an even stronger team in the spring." Vandermade and the Longhorns begin their spring schedule in Sorrento, Fla. for the UCF Challenge on Feb. 12, 2012. |
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