Napa’s Talley earns all-Big 12

NOTES AND QUOTES for a Tuesday in the Napa Valley:

Freshman Emily Talley of Napa finished in a tie for sixth place individually and was named to the all-Big 12 Tournament team for the University of Colorado women’s golf team Sunday at the conference championships.

Playing in windy conditions at The Rawls Course in Lubbock, Texas, Talley fired a 5-over-par 78 in the final round for an 11-over 230 total for the 54-hole tournament. It’s the highest finish in program history at the Big 12 Championships by a freshman. Talley became just the fifth overall Colorado player to make the all-Big 12 Tournament team since the conference was formed 13 years ago. The honor is given to the top-10 individuals plus ties.

“I’m very proud of Emily Talley, having to carry the team on her shoulders as a freshman,” coach Anne Kelly said on the Buffaloes’ athletic Web site.  “This is definitely the highest finish for a freshman and she deserves it.”

Talley, who attended Justin-Siena High School for three years before transferring to Robert Louis Stevenson-Pebble Beach for her senior year, made four birdies and an eagle in three rounds of play. She was presented with a medal.

“It was the windiest today by far,” said Talley. “It was tough but I felt like I was able to keep it together until the last three holes. I made one bad decision and the last two holes were saves for bogeys.

“I was happy with the way I played this weekend, but it was really frustrating because I didn’t know where I was going to hit when I had to factor so many different elements into a single shot. This was definitely confidence-building for me though. I haven’t played consistently this well so to do it at Big 12’s was good for my confidence.”

Talley, who plays out of Napa Valley Country Club, shot back-to-back rounds of 76 during the first two rounds.

As a team, Colorado tied for eighth. The Buffaloes found out Monday that they were officially invited to the NCAA Championships for the first time in program history. Colorado will participate in the Western Regional competition May 7-9 in Tempe, Ariz.

The Buffaloes are one of 21 teams that are entered in the regional at the ASU Karsten golf course.

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The Cal State Sacramento varsity eight women’s rowing team, with Napa’s Erin DeGoede at coxswain, raced to a winning time of 6:46.5 over 2,000 meters, beating UC Davis in the Causeway Cup Saturday. It was held at the Sac State Aquatic Center in Gold River.

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It was a memorable “Senior Day” for Micah Putnam, who plays second base for the Cal State Northridge softball team.

The Matadors honored their two graduating seniors, Putnam and Sarah Kahn-Shamout, in a pre-game ceremony. Putnam, a Justin-Siena graduate, was 2-for-3  with her third home run of the season, a two-run shot in the first inning, as Northridge beat UC Riverside Sunday, 5-3.

She also scored two runs. Defensively, she had five putouts and four assists. Putnam has a team-leading 30 RBIs to go along with a .297 batting average, 35 hits and 17 runs scored.

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Shortstop Tim Steggall hit his first career home run to left field in the fourth inning for the University of Texas-Arlington in a 5-2 loss to Stephen F. Austin Saturday at Jaycees Field in Texas. Steggall, who played baseball at Justin-Siena, was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, two putouts and four assists.

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Russia’s Dmitry Tursunov is 35th on the ATP money leaders list. Tursunov, who spent December training at Napa Valley Country Club, has won $189,662.

Tursunov won two singles titles (Sydney, Helsinki) and compiled a 34-22 record during the 2008 season. He also won a doubles title and was 16-15. He missed part of the season with injuries.

E-mail Executive Sports Editor Marty James at mjames@napanews.com or call 256-2223.

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