March 15, 2005

HENDERSON, Nev. - Every team in the field turned in a lower score Tuesday at the UNLV Spring Invitational as winds calmed down at the Black Mountain Golf and Country Club.

UNLV shaved three strokes off its first-round total, posting a 309 on the second day to finish in fourth place with a total of 621 (+45). The Rebels three-stroke turnaround was one of the smallest off the day for teams, as Purdue shot 25 strokes better Tuesday than Monday.

Individuals also favored better Tuesday with four players carding rounds of par or lower compared to Monday's best score of one-over par.

Rebel junior Elena Kurokawa shot a one-over 73 in the second round and is in fifth place with a 151 (+7) after two rounds. Kurokawa is joined in the top 10 by Young Pak, who is in sixth after shooting a three-over 75 for a two-day total of 152 (+8). UNLV sophomore Seema Sadekar is tied for 29th (77-81-158, +14), Hwanhee Lee is in 51st (80-83-163, +19) and Allison Chell sits in 62nd (86-80-166, +22).

Leading the tournament is Cassandra Kirkland of Arizona after she shot a three-under 69 for the low round of the tournament thus far. Kirkland's strong second round brought her back to even par for the invitational (75-69-144). Kirkland leads Catalina Marin of USC by two strokes after she posted her second straight 73 for a total of 146 (+2). Eileen Vargas of Pepperdine is third (74-75-149, +5), Heather Olmstead of Nevada, Reno is fourth (80-70-150, +6) and then Kurokawa.

USC has five players in the top 25 and leads after two rounds of the tournament with a team total of 605 (+29). Arizona is in second place (610, +34) followed by Pepperdine (619, +43) and UNLV.

Wednesday's final round is set to tee off at 8:00 a.m. (PST) on the first and 10th holes on the par-72, 6,009-yards course.

Full results may be found by clicking here.