THE FAB FIVE
My look at the top five teams in the country right now

MEN
1. Stanford—The Cardinal victory train is full steam ahead with win No. 5 on the season coming in the form of a five-shot triumph over host Southern California at USC Invitational last Tuesday. Next event: Oregon Duck Invitational, Eugene CC, Eugene, Ore., March 26-27

2. Alabama—Secret to the Crimson Tide’s success? They the lead country in eagles (15) and birdies (365), plus Alabama has an impressive 29-percent birdie conversion rate. Next event: E-Z-Go Schenkel Invitational, Forest Heights CC, Statesboro, Ga., March 17-18

3. Florida —Gators looking to bounce back from poor showing in Puerto Rico. “It’s excusable to not be at your best every now and then,” says coach Buddy Alexander of the team’s recent ninth-place finish, “but it’s imperative to play well your next time out.” Next event: Southern Highlands Collegiate, Southern Highlands CC, Las Vegas, March 9-11

4. Oklahoma State—This weekend in Las Vegas, the Cowboys are expected to have both  and Pablo MartinJonathan Moore in the lineup together for only the second time since the Ping Preview in October. Next event: Southern Highlands Collegiate, Southern Highlands CC, Las Vegas, March 9-11

5. Georgia—The Bulldogs are searching for back-to-back victories (after Puerto Rico win) for the third time in 12 months. Next event: Southern Highlands Collegiate, Southern Highlands CC, Las Vegas, March 9-11

WOMEN
1. Arizona State —The Sun Devils benefit from having three players with sub-73 stroke averages: Anna Nordqvist (72.27), Jennifer Osborn (72.67) and Azahara Munoz (72.73). Each is among the top 11 in the Golfstat Cup ranking. Next event: Texas A&M “Mo”Morial, The Traditions Club, College Station, Texas, March 9-11

2. Duke —Two-time defending NCAA champs romp in Orlando with 26-shot win at UCF Invitational, while Amanda Blumenherst posts a tidy 12-shot pasting individually for her second straight wire-to-wire victory. Next event: LSU/Cleveland Classic, The University Club, Baton Rouge, La., March 16-18

3. Georgia—Another slow start results in another runner-up finish. Good news for Bulldogs is they were still 12 shots better than third-place Pepperdine and Vanderbilt in Orlando. Better news: sophomore Alina Lee (age 16) backs up share of Lady Puerto Rico title with third at Grand Cypress Next event: Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic, University of Georgia GC, Athens, Ga., March 23-25

4. Auburn —The Tigers continue to have the lowest average drop score (76.97) of any team in the country by more than half a shot. Next event: LSU/Cleveland Classic, The University Club, Baton Rouge, La., March 16-18

5. Pepperdine—Played Vanderbilt to a draw at Grand Cypress (the two tied for third place), but passes the Commodores into the top five by virtue of win at the Northrup Grumman. Next event: Ping ASU Invitational, The Karsten Course at ASU, Tempe, Ariz., March 30-April 1

GOLF WORLD COLLEGE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
MEN
Mike Van Sickle, Marquette
Five days after being the only player to shoot under par (three-under 213) en route to a five-shot win at the Wexford Plantation Intercollegiate in South Carolina, the 20-year-old sophomore earned his second career college victory last Sunday, a one-shot triumph at the Ron Smith/USF Invitational. In posting three straight 71s at Lake Jovita (Fla.) G&CC, Van Sickle was the lone golfer to break par all three rounds. “He’s just playing really well right now,” Marquette men’s coach Tim Grogan said. “He’s a very consistent golfer and that showed in this tournament.” Van Sickle is one win shy of the individual season win record held by Tom Uutala who won three times in the 1996-97 season.

WOMEN
Caroline Westrup, Florida State
The sophomore from Sweden claimed the Chrysler Challenge title by seven shots, posting a two-over 218 at Baytowne GC in Destin, Fla. Her final-round 68 was three strokes lower than the next best 18-hole score for the entire tournament and 10 strokes lower than the final-round average. It was her seventh top-10 finish in 10 career starts with the Seminoles, who also claimed the team title by 24 shots over North Carolina. It was also Westrup’s third career college win.

STAT OF THE WEEK
27.95
Difference between Duke sophomore Amanda Blumenherst’s winning score at the UCF Invitational (11-under 205) and the average 54-hole score for the entire 73-player field.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR
• It’s been nearly five years since the Florida Southern women won their last Division II NCAA title. Yet the Lady Mocs look like they’re ready to knock off four-time defending champion Rollins this season, having won their home tournament, the Lady Moc Classic, last week. It marked the fifth time in six starts the team had finish in at least a share for first place. Only one other Division II squad—Lynn University at the Nova Southeastern Invitational last October—has beaten the Mocs, and that came in a playoff. Key to Florida Southern’s success has been Kim Ulander, a freshman from Sweden who has one win and six top-10s, and Heather Burgner, a sophomore from Lakeland, Fla., with four top-10 finishes in 2006-07.

• Looking for a dark-horse candidate for first-team All-American honors? Consider San Diego State’s Aaron Goldberg. The 21-year-old junior has won just once, but he has five top-five finishes in seven starts after a T-4 at this week’s Callaway Golf Invitational in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. In the process of posting scores of 72-69-71 for a four-under 212, Goldberg has now broken par in 15 of 21 rounds on the season.

TOURNAMENTS TO WATCH
MEN
Southern Highlands Collegiate Championship
    (For live scoring, link here to Golfstat)
March 9-11
Southern Highland GC, Las Vegas (par 72, 7,510 yards)
Field: Arizona, Arizona State, Clemson, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Minnesota, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas A&M, UCLA, UNLV, Wake Forest, Washington
Defending champion: UNLV (15-over 879); Matt Kinsinger, UNLV, (two-under 214)
Skinny: The Las Vegas Founders have another primo field for the 32nd edition of the tournament, with six of the participating schools ranked Golf World/Nike Golf’s coaches’ poll top-10 (and 14 of the 15 ranked in the top-25). Many individual winners have gone on to win on the PGA Tour, including Jay Don Blake (Utah State, 1978), Billy Mayfair (Arizona State, 1987), Phil Mickelson (Arizona State, 1991), Stewart Cink and David Duval (Georgia Tech, 1992), David Gossett (Texas, 1999), D.J. Trahan (Clemson, 2000) and Troy Matteson (Georgia Tech, 2002).

General Jim Hackler Invitational
    (For live scoring, link here to Golfstat)
March 10-11
TPC Myrtle Beach, Murrells, S.C. (Par 72, 6,950 yards)
Host: Coastal Carolina
Field: Augusta State, Baylor, Charlotte, Coastal Carolina, East Tennessee State, Duke, Georgia Southern, Kent State, Lamar, New Mexico, UNC-Wilmington, North Florida, Oklahoma, Pepperdine, Purdue, Southern California, Tulsa

Mission Inn Collegiate Invitational
March 10-11
El Campeon GC, Howie-in-the-Hills, Fla. (72, 6,923 yards)
Host: Xavier
Field: Akron, Charleston Southern, Eastern Michigan, George Mason, Iowa, Iowa state, Liberty, Louisville, Marquette, Marshall, Missouri, UNC-Greensboro, Ohio, Old Dominion, Rhode Island, Wichita State, Xavier

USF Triumph at Pauma Valley
    (For live scoring, link here to Golfstat)
March 11-13
Pauma Valley CC, San Diego
Host: San Francisco
Field: Air Force, Cal Poly, CSU-Monterey Bay, Campbell, Hartford, Long Beach State, Loyola Marymount, Notre Dame, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Clara, St. Mary’s (Calif.), UC-Santa Barbara, Weber State, Wisconsin

Fresno State Lexus Golf Classic
    (For live scoring, link here to Golfstat)
March 12-13
Sunnyside CC, Fresno, Calif.
Host: Fresno State
Field: Boise State, CSU Bakersfield, CSU Northridge, UC Irvine, Fresno State, Hawaii, Kansas State, Nevada, New Mexico State, Oregon, Pacific, San Diego State, San Jose State, UTEP, Wyoming

Cleveland Golf Palmetto Invitational
March 12-13
Palmetto GC, Aiken, S.C.
Host: USC-Aiken
Field: Belmont Abbey, College of Charleston, Davidson, East Carolina, Elon, Francis Marion, Furman, Maryland, Nebraska, Penn State, Presbyterian, St. John’s, USC Aiken, Virginia Commonwealth, Virginia Tech

WOMEN
Texas A&M “Mo”Morial
    (For live scoring, link here to Golfstat)
March 9-11
The Traditions Club, Bryan, Texas (Par 72, 6,255 yards)
Field: Arizona State, Denver, Iowa State, Kansas State, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Princeton, Redlands CC, South Carolina, Southern California, Tulsa, Texas, Texas A&M, UCLA, UTEP
Defending champion: Texas A&M (59-over 923, defeated Arkansas in playoff); Ashley Knoll, Texas A&M (two-over 218)
Skinny: Before defeating Arkansas in a sudden-death playoff last year, it had been eight years since the Aggies had won their home event. This season, the 14-year-old event—named after former A&M standout Monica Welsh, who died in a car accident in 1992—has arguably its best field ever, with seven of the 16 teams in ranked in the top 25 of the most recent Golf World/NGCA coaches’ poll. Meanwhile, Texas A&M senior Ashley Knoll has a chance to become the third player to win the individual title twice, and the first to claim the honor in back-to-back seasons.

Rio Verde Invitational
    (For live scoring, link here to Golfstat)
March 9-11
Quail Run at Rio Verde CC, Rio Verde, Ariz.
Host: Western Michigan
Field: Arkansas-Little Rock, Ball State, Baylor, Bowling Green State, Bradley, Cincinnati, Eastern Michigan, Illinois, Illinois State, Minnesota, Missouri State, Ohio, Southern Illinois, Texas Tech, Toledo, Western Michigan, Wisconsin, Xavier

Lady Gator Invitational
    (For live scoring, link here to Golfstat)
March 10-11
University of Florida GC, Gainesville, Fla.
Host: Florida
Field: Central Florida, Florida, Florida International, Florida State, Georgia State, Kent State, Louisville, Michigan, Michigan State, Mississippi, Mississippi State, North Carolina, UNC-Greensboro, South Florida, TCU, Tennessee

Peggy Kirk Bell Invitational
March 12-13
Tuscawilla CC, West Springs, Fla.
Host: Rollins College
Field: Barry, CSU-San Marcos, Daytona Beach CC, Florida Southern, Kentucky, Lynn, Marshall, Methodist, Nebraska-Omaha, Northern Illinois, Nova Southeastern, Rollins, Saint Leo

UNLV Spring Invitational
    (For live scoring, link here to Golfstat)
March 12-14
Boulder Creek GC, Boulder City, Nev. (Par 72, 6,153 yards)
Host: UNLV
Field: Boise State, BYU, Campbell, Eastern Washington, Fresno State, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Long Beach State, Nebraska, New Mexico, New Mexico State, Notre Dame, San Diego State, San Francisco, Texas Tech, Washington State, UNLV