June 9, 2005

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The Lady Volunteer golf team has been rewarded for its fine 2004-05 campaign, as they claimed a ranking of sixth in the final Golfstat poll of the season. It is the second-best closing position in Big Orange history. Additionally, standout player Violeta Retamoza came in as the sixth-ranked collegian in the individual polls.

At the NCAA Championships, Head Coach Judi Pavon's squad finished tied for sixth and brought down the school standard with a four-day-total of 1187. It marked the second time in her illustrious coaching career on Rocky Top that Pavon guided a team to a top-10 finish at the NCAAs.

The performance at the Championships was simply the culmination of a tremendous season-long effort. Tennessee's team stroke average in 34 rounds of golf over 11 events was a blistering 297.59, which is the lowest in program history. The mark shattered UT's previous school record (301.00) by nearly four shots.

Overall, the team turned in nine top-five finishes, including a win at the NCAA West Regional and a pair of runner-up showings en route to an incredible head-to-head record of 125-29-5. The 125 victories are the second-highest sum in the annals of UT golf, while the winning percentage of .802 trails only the 1997 team's mark of .824.

Retamoza played a big part in the Lady Vols' success, wrapping up her junior campaign with an average of 73.18. It is the second-lowest single-season average in school history. The Aguascalientes, Mexico, native had a slew of individual honors bestowed upon her, including being named a National Golf Coaches Association first-team All-American, the Southeastern Conference Player of the Year and the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year. She also earned first-team All-SEC status for the third straight season.

In October she became the first Lady Vol to win the Mercedes-Benz by carding a tournament-record score of 211. Three times she claimed runner-up honors, including a clutch performance at the NCAA West Regional, which netted her a spot on the all-region team. Overall, Retamoza notched 10 top-25 showings, six of which were in the top 10.