April 1, 2005

LAS VEGAS - Elena Kurokawa continued her torrid spring by being named the Mountain West Conference Golfer of the Month for the second consecutive time following two top-five finishes this past month.

The junior started March by placing second at the Spartan Invitational with a three-round scored of two-under 211 (67-73-71) on the par-71, 5,826-yard course. Kurokawa opened the tournament with a four-under 67 on her way to leading UNLV to a fourth-place finish as a team. At the UNLV Invite she finished fourth with a three-round total of 223 (+7).

Kurokawa has emerged as the Rebels top player as the club prepares to defend its MWC Championship it won last spring. She has posted three top-10 finishes in her last three tournaments and has been in the top 25 in every tournament this spring.

Kurokawa's award marks the third consecutive month that a Rebel golfer has won the as Hwanhee Lee closed the fall season by being named the conference's golfer of the month. This is the second monthly honor for Kurokawa.

UNLV wraps up its regular season next week at the BYU Dixie Classic in St. George, Utah, and the Rebels will try to win the tournament for the third-consecutive year. The tournament starts Monday with teams playing 36 holes and it concludes Tuesday with another 18 holes.

The tournament is the Rebels' final tune-up before the MWC Championships on April 21-23 at the Meadow's Course at Sunriver, Ore.