Sept. 30, 2005

LAS VEGAS - The UNLV women's golf team is currently ranked eighth in the country in Golfweek's rankings, marking the first time in the Rebels' history that the program has been in the top 10 in the country. The Rebels were ranked 14th in the nation in Golfweek's preseason poll to begin the season.

UNLV started its season with a fourth-place finish at the Dick McGuire Invitational earlier this week, finishing ahead of four teams currently ranked in the top 25. Pepperdine, which finished 10 shots ahead of the Rebels, won the invitational, vaulting them to the top spot in Golfweek's poll.

Duke was second, followed by Purdue, Georgia and Arkansas in the top five. Tennessee and UCLA were ranked sixth and seventh, followed by UNLV while New Mexico and Texas A&M rounded out the top 10.

Rebel senior Elena Kurokawa was ranked 12th in the country among individuals following her fifth-place finish Wednesday at the invitational. Kurokawa shot a three-round total of 216 (-3) for her sixth-career top five finish. Joining her in the top 20 was freshman Grace Woo, who made a big impact in her first collegiate tournament and is ranked 18th in the country by Golfweek. Woo tied for sixth at the invitational to begin her Rebel career, carding a 217 (-2).

UNLV returns to the links for the Edean Ihalfeldt Invitational, a three-day tournament hosted by the University of Washington on Oct. 10-12 at the Sahalee Country Club in Redmond, Wash.

GOLFWEEK'S TOP 101. Pepperdine2. Duke3. Purdue4. Georgia5. Arkansas6. Tennessee7. UCLA8. UNLV9. New Mexico10. Texas A&M