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Screen Leads Oklahoma to Fourth at Big 12s

April 20, 2021 | Women's Golf

THE WOODLANDS, Texas – Hannah Screen finished in fourth and made the All-Tournament Team to power the Sooners to a fourth-place finish at the Big 12 ChampionshipĀ on Tuesday. It's the Sooners' 17th top-five finish at the championship and eighth of the Drouin-Luttrell era, which began in 2009.Ā 

"We had a great week. It was the first time this semester that we've put three good rounds together," head coach Veronique Drouin-Luttrell said. "I'm so proud of our team for fighting. We came up short and finished just a few shots off of second, but overall it was a great week."

Screen, a junior from London, led the way for the Crimson and Cream, firing a 69 in the final round to grab the secondĀ top-five of her season. She was joined inside the top 15 by Kaitlin Milligan and Mikhaela Fortuna, who earned the best postseason finish of their careers at the par-72 Club at Carlton Woods. The Sooners' 54-hole score of 848 broke the previous Big 12 record of 856, set by Oklahoma State in 2016. The last 54-hole best for the Sooners was 861, established in 2014 when the team won the title.Ā 

"I think this sets us up nicely for the postseason," Drouin-Luttrell added. "We've got to take it one tournament at a time and stay focused. At the end of the day, the postseason is extremely long, so this is done, and we have to move on and see what's next.Ā 

Screen (-8, T4) continued her strong play on Tuesday, tallying the ninth round in the 60s of her season en route to a T4 placement. It's the junior's fifth top-10 finish of 2020-21 in just seven tournaments as the Sooner has established herself as one of the best golfers in the country. Screen was strong early in her final round, paving the way up the leaderboard with four birdies and eight pars over the first 12 holes, before closing her championship with two bogeys and a birdie to finish at 69 (-3) on the day and a school-record 208 (-8) at Big 12s.Ā 

"I think this week definitely raises my confidence to know that I can go out there and keep up with the best in the nation," Screen said after the round. "The Big 12 is super strong, and it has some of the best players in the country, so it was a big confidence booster for the team and me as well."

Kaitlin Milligan (-3) and Mikhaela Fortuna (-3) shared 12th after sinking 12 birdies apiece.Ā 

Milligan played her best tournament of the season en route to her best Big 12-finish of 12th, besting her previous high of T21. The senior carded a 73 on Tuesday to close her championship but tallied a counting score for the Sooners each day in Houston.

Fortuna also secured her best postseason finish, improving on her 2019 placement by 11 spots. The junior entered Monday in second place, but a 73 in the second round bumped her into 13th before she fired a 1-under 71 to conclude her week on Tuesday. The Manila product finished inside the top 15 twice and went 3-0 at Big 12 match play in a shortened season.Ā 

Maria Fernanda Martinez matched her career-low round set on Monday by firing a 2-under 70 in Tuesday's final round to help guide Oklahoma to its strong finish. The sophomore grabbed 35 pars on the week, second-most on the Sooners only behind Screen. Her T19 finish ties the best of her career, set at the 2020 Schooner Fall Classic.Ā 

Libby Winans scored a 76 (+5) on Tuesday to finish her championship alone in 34th.Ā 

"Everyone played well this week, I mean everyone," the 12th-year head coach added. "It's definitely a confidence booster for all of us, and you can feel positive energy. Golf is such an individual sport, and you can feel the momentum, and that's the biggest difference for us this week."

The Sooners now await their fate, which the NCAA Selection Committee will announce on April 28. The team entered the week ranked 32nd in the Golfstat poll and is in line to appear in an NCAA Regional for the fourth straight season.Ā 

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