Going into this past weekend’s Lady Boilermaker Invitational at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., the ISU women’s golf team was primed to show that they could play with the best teams in the country.

The Cyclones were going into this meet with momentum and ranked No. 36 nationally after a great performance in Tucson, Ariz., where they placed second in the Mountain View Collegiate tournament. However, the Cyclones were not able to come out of Purdue as successfully at they would have wanted.

In a field of 13 teams, including 10 ranked higher nationally than the Cyclones, Iowa State finished 12th. Head coach Julie Manning was obviously disappointed with the end result of this tournament.

“Our goal was top three or four, so finishing 12 out of 13 teams did not help ourselves,” Manning said. “It was a tough course and tough competition. We just couldn’t get it done.”

Manning said the team had too much information about the rankings going into the tournament, which brought on unneeded pressure.

If it were up to Manning the team would not have even seen the rankings before the meet. Manning said her team plays better with their backs up against the wall and doesn’t want them to get comfortable with these rankings.

“I just want them to relax, have fun and go out and play well,” Manning said. “With all the unnecessary pressure, it was a challenge for them to do that.”

Individually, sophomore Louise Kenney continues to power through the competition. In a field of many nationally-ranked individuals, Kenney finished in a tie for eighth with Iowa’s Laura Holmes with a 54-hole score of 226. With this finish, it marks Kenney’s second consecutive top-10 finish as she continues to lead the Cyclones toward the postseason.

Laura Wells and Sarah Gilbert also stood out for the Cyclones as both finished in the top-50 with scores of 239 and 242.

The Cyclones next play in this weekend’s Big 12 tournament in Columbia, Mo., hosted by the University of Missouri. Manning would like to get some of the steam they had before going into Purdue back for this weekend.

“I don’t want them to have their heads down and dwell on this past weekend,” Manning said. “They have a lot to prove to themselves and they will do just fine as long as they stay positive.”