SAN -- The No. 27 Cougars went five-over-par during Tuesday's final round and finished second at the TaylorMade Aztec Fall Classic in San Diego.
BYU had the best second round in the field and nearly made a run at tournament champion Denver, finishing just seven strokes back after trailing by 17 after the first round. The Cougars have finished second in three out of four tournaments on the season.
"We played steady today," BYU All-American Rachel Newren said. "The course was a little bit tricky, but I think we came out and did a pretty good job."
BYU sophomore Natalia Jimenez had her best tournament as a Cougar going one-under-par and nearly capturing medalist honors. Jimenez was in the lead going down the stretch, but a couple of missed her putts cost the Colombian native her first victory as a Cougar. She finished two strokes back of Denver's Stephanie Sherlock.
"Nati (Jimenez) had it going today," BYU head coach Sue Nyhus said. "She easily could have won if a couple of putts would have gone in. She is having a great season and is a big reason we have done so well this year."
Three other Cougars finished in the top 15. Alexis Edwards who competed as an individual went one-under on Tuesday to finish tied for fifth place. Other than Edwards, Newren was the only Cougar to go under par on the day. Her one-under 71 helped her move into a tie for 15th after a disappointing first round. It was her third top 15 finish out of four events on the season. Junior Juli Erekson had a steady tournament going 73-73--146 and finished tied for eighth place. This was the best finish of the season for the 2005 MWC Freshman of the Year. Freshman Hannah Summerhays and Daphne Vines finished tied for 26th and 41st respectively. Four other Cougars also competed as individuals as Nyhus evaluates her deep line-up. Freshman Camille Gardner went 77-79--156 and finished tied for 41st while senior Danielle von Arnim finished tied for 67th individually.
As BYU looks to find a way to win this fall, Nyhus is satisfied with the progress of her team as they head into their final tournament of the season, the Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown.
"This is a special group," Nyhus said. "We're still learning how to win as we gear up for our key tournaments in the spring. We're real close. I see a lot of good things out there that gets me excited about the potential of this team."
BYU INDIVIDUALS
3. Natalia Jimenez 70-73--143 (-1)
T8. J. WightmanErekson 73-73--146 (+2)
T15. Rachel Newren 78-71--149 (+5)
T26. Hannah Summerhays 77-76--153 (+9)
T41. Daphne Vines 76-80--156 (+12)
COUGARS COMPETING AS INDIVIDUALS
T5. Alexis Edwards 74-71--145 (+1)
T41. Camille Gardner 77-79--156 (+12)
T67. Danielle von Arnim 78-82--160 (+16)
T82. Ashley Childers 79-84--163 (+19)
T82. Shayla Forsey 84-79--163 (+19)
TEAM SCORES
1. Denver 279-303--582 (+6)
2. Brigham Young 296-293--589 (+13)
3. UC - Irvine 301-295--596 (+20)
4. Xavier 310-296--606 (+30)
5. Notre Dame 310-299--609 (+33)
Montana 303-306--609 (+33)
7. Fresno State 307-304--611 (+35)
8. McLennan CC 305-308--613 (+37)
9. San Diego State 304-310--614 (+38)
10. Sacramento State 309-306--615 (+39)
11. North Texas 310-318--628 (+52)
12. Cal Poly 306-323--629 (+53)
Wyoming 315-314--629 (+53)
14. Portland State 306-325--631 (+55)
15. Portland 317-315--632 (+56)
16. Northern Arizona 313-321--634 (+58)
17. CSU-Northridge 313-322--635 (+59)
18. UC - Riverside 316-327--643 (+67)
19. CSU-San Marcos 340-335--675 (+99)