Photo courtesy of Arizona Sports Information Department Freshman golfer Erica Blasberg had her first top-five finish yesterday at the Mason Rudolph Championship, placing second.

After a first-place finish in the NCAA Preview, the women's golf team hit the links for the first time and posted a second-place finish at the Mason Rudolph Championships yesterday.

The Wildcats closed the event nine strokes behind host and champion Vanderbilt, which shot 878 (+14). UA shot a final-round 304 yesterday.

"I'm disappointed with the way we finished the tournament," head coach Greg Allen said. "But overall I am pleased with the way our team has been playing."

The Wildcats' top player was freshman Erica Blasberg, who finished in second place, her first career top-five finish.

Blasberg, from Corona, Calif., used a final-round 75 to complete the tournament at even-par 216. The 5-foot-6-inch freshman improved 10 strokes from her performance at last week's NCAA Fall Preview where she tied for 21st place.

"Erica has been tremendous for us so far," Allen said. "She has adjusted very well to the pressures of college golf. I expect her to just keep improving."

The 54-hole tournament was held at the Iron Horse Course at the Legends Club of Tennessee.

Joining Blasberg in the top five was sophomore Miriam Kraschinski. The native of Whitianga, New Zealand, tied for fifth place with a three-day total of 6-over-par 222. The top-five finish is her second-consecutive after she won the NCAA Fall Preview last week. Senior Anne Lee earned the second top 10 finish of her career as she tied for 10th place with a score of 8-over-par 224.

Senior Laura Myerscough and freshman Whitney Welch both tied for 22nd place as the duo posted identical scores of 229 (+13). Senior Julia Kraschinski, competing as an individual, took 42nd place after closing the tournament at 18-over-par 234.

"We are happy with top-five finishes in our first two tournaments," Allen said. "But we know that we need to continue to get better all year long if we are going to reach our goals of winning postseason championships."

Arizona's varsity squad will take nearly a one-month hiatus, competing next at the Stanford-Pepsi Women's Intercollegiate in Palo Alto, Calif., beginning Oct. 18. The Wildcat junior varsity will begin its season on Oct. 14 at the NAU Lumberjack Invitational in Flagstaff.