Wake Forest Athletics
Deacon Decade -- Women's Golf
12/10/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
Dec. 10, 2009
Women's Golf Deacon Decade Photo Gallery
As the decade comes to a close later this month, WakeForestSports.com will look back on the past 10 years in Demon Deacon athletics. Today, the focus is on the decade that was in Wake Forest women's golf.
10. Nannette Hill Shoots School-Record 6-under 66 Two Different Times - 2007
Nannette Hill set the school-record for lowest 18-hole round with a pair of 6-under 66s in 2007. The first came at the NCAA East Regional at LSU's University Course when she fired an opening round 66 on her way to an eighth place finish at 5-under par. She then tied her mark in the second round of the 2007 Landfall Tradition in the fall. Despite a final round 76, Hill would go on to win the Landfall with a 54-hole total of 1-over 217 for her first collegiate victory. Hill's record still stands as former teammate Natalie Sheary also fired a 66 in the opening round of the 2009 ACC Championship but that round was 5-under par on Sedgefield Country Club's par-71 layout.
9. One Smart Team - Spring 2003
All ten members of the women's golf team were named to the Dean's list for the spring semester in 2003, marking the first time that had ever happened in program history. The team was led by senior Nuria Clua, who after earning second team All-American honors, took home Academic All-American honors for the second-straight season. The mathematical business graduate also set the school's single season scoring record at 73.7.
8. Demon Deacons Blow-Away Strong Field at Lady Gator -- March 4-6, 2005
Wake Forest captured its first win in almost five years as it cruised to a 19-shot victory at the Lady Gator Invitational. Four Demon Deacons finished in the top-10 led by Ashley Hoagland's second place finish. Hoagland finished at 6-over par after a final round 70. It was the best finish of her career. Christine Hallstrom tied for sixth at 12-over while Mandy Goins was a shot behind her in eighth at 13-over. Maggie Simons rounded out the Deacon quartet with a ninth place finish at 15-over. Wake defeated a host of top teams including No. 1 Duke and No. 3 Auburn. In all, there were nine teams ranked in the top-20 at the event.
7. Natalie Sheary Named ACC Rookie of the Year - May 7, 2008
Freshman Natalie Sheary was named the 2008 ACC Rookie of the Year after leading all ACC Rookies with a 74.1 stroke average. She was the low Deacon finisher at the ACC Championship and claiming her first collegiate victory earlier in the spring. Sheary became just the third Demon Deacon to earn the award and the first since Marta Prieto in 1998. She led the Deacs at a total of six events, including the NCAA East Regional and winning the Northrop Grumann Regional Challenge. She was named the Golfweek Female Golfer of the Week following her victory. The West Hartford, Conn., native earned Golfweek honorable mention All-American honors in 2008, becoming just the third Deacon freshman to earn that distinction.
6. Nuria Clua Named ACC Player of the Year -- May 7, 2003
Senior Nuria Clau was named ACC Player of the Year for 2003, becoming the third Demon Deacon to win the honor and the first since Laura Philo Diaz in 1996. Clau had a stellar year, winning two tournaments and finishing second at the ACC Championship. She recorded a then school-record stroke average of 73.7 and also tied the then school-record with a 67 at the Bryan National Collegiate. Clau also was named to the All-ACC squad for the second consecutive year and earned second team All-America honors in 2003.
5. Laura Diaz Wins Twice On LPGA Tour - 2002
Laura Diaz broke through and captured her first LPGA title at the 2002 Welch's/Circle K Champions tournament in Arizona. Diaz posted four rounds in the 60s to earn the victory in her fourth year as a professional. Then two months later, she would win the Corning Classic to claim her second title of the season. She finished the year with 10 top-10 finishes and earned over $840,000. She became just the second Wake Forest alumna to win on the LPGA Tour, joining Patty Jordan who tasted victory at the Ocean City Open in 1988.
4. Natalie Sheary Named ACC-Co Player of the Year - May 4, 2009
Natalie Sheary became just the fourth Demon Deacon to be named ACC Player of the Year, as she shared the distinction in 2009 with Duke's three-time National Player of the Year Amanda Blumenherst. The West Hartford, Conn., native won two tournaments and was second on the team with a 74.8 stroke average. Her crowning achievement came when she defeated Blumenherst on the first playoff hole to claim her first ACC Individual title. This was the second-straight season that Sheary had earned All-ACC honors and she is still on pace to join Stephanie Neill as the only Demon Deacons to earn All-ACC honors four-straight years. Sheary started the season by finishing tied for 39th at the Fall Preview and then tied for 31st at the Mason Rudolph Championship. Since then, she finished outside of the top-20 just twice and picked-up two wins and four top-5 finishes. She finished the season ranked No. 33 in Golfweek's Sagarin rankings.
3. Hill and Sheary Earn All-American Honors - May 22, 2009
Senior Nannette Hill and sophomore Natalie Sheary were both named as NGCA and Golfweek All-Americans in 2009. The duo became the first two Deacons to earn All-America honors in the same season since Stephanie Neill and Alexandra Armas in 1995. Hill was named a second-team honoree after the best season of her career. She led the team with a 73.9 stroke average which was a full stroke lower than her career average. The Pelham, N.Y., native also finished in the top-10 in seven of her 11 tournaments, including four fourth-place finishes. Sheary earned honorable mention honors for the second-straight season after winning two tournaments and finishing in the top-20 seven times. One of her wins came at the ACC Championship, defeating three-time national Player of the Year Amanda Blumenherst in a playoff.
2. The 2008-09 Team Sets School Scoring Record - May 22, 2009
The 2008-09 squad had one of the best seasons in school history, winning three times and finishing with the lowest team scoring averaging in school-history at 298.41. That mark broke the previous record of 298.82 which was held by both the 2001-02 and 2007-08 teams. The Deacons lowest tournament came at the LSC/Cleveland Golf Classic as Wake carded a 6-over 870 thanks to an opening round 4-under 284. All five players finished the first round at par or better, marking just the second time that had happened in program history. Wake also carded an opening round 2-over 286 at the ACC Championship, which was the fourth-lowest postseason round in school-history. Overall, the team finished with a total of seven top-5 finishes.
1. Wake Wins The 2009 ACC Championship - April 19, 2009
The eighth-ranked women's golf team halted Duke's 13-year reign at the top as they cruised to a 24-shot wire-to-wire victory at the 2009 ACC Championship. Backed by Natalie Sheary's opening round 5-under 66, the Deacons took a 14-shot lead after the first round with a 2-over 286. They would extend the lead with a 296 in the second round and then tie for the lowest round of the day with a 287 in the final round. All five Demon Deacons finished in the top-16 led by Sheary, who defeated three-time national Player of the Year Amanda Blumenhurst on the first playoff hole to capture medalist honors. The ACC title was the first for Wake since winning back-to-back titles in 1994 and 1995. Seniors Nannette Hill (4th) and Jean Chua (5th) finished their ACC careers in style with top-5 finishes.
Players Mentioned
