Nebraska women's golfer Kelli Ann Strand closed the NCAA Cle Elum Regional with a final-round 76 to for 24th overall in a 66-player field on Wednesday.

Strand, a sophomore from Challis, Idaho, ended the 54-hole tournament with a 225 (+9) to match fellow individual competitors Emma Bunch (New Mexico State), Riana Mission (San Francisco) and Sabrina Iqbal (Colorado) along with two other golfers in a six-way tie for 24th.

Strand capped her second season at Nebraska with a school-record 71.53 stroke average over 32 rounds, breaking the record she set a year ago (72.05). Strand's tie for 24th was the best individual finish by a Husker women's golfer at an NCAA Regional since JC Stevenson (T14th) and Elli Brown (T22nd) notched top-25 finishes for the Huskers at the 2008 NCAA Central Regional in Austin, Texas (May 8-10). Last season, Strand tied for 30th individually at the NCAA Raleigh Regional.

Strand became just the third golfer in Husker history to own a pair of top-30 finishes in NCAA Regional play, joining first-team All-American Sarah Sasse (T13th, 2000; T8th, 2001; T5th, 2003) and Amy Roux (T27th, 2000; T29th, 2001). 

Stanford ran away with the NCAA Cle Elum Regional title with a three-round total of 847 (-17), which was 18 strokes better than runner-up Duke (865). Virginia finished 29 strokes behind the Cardinal in third at 876, while Arizona State (885) and San Jose State (887) rounded out the top-five teams. Those five schools advanced to the upcoming 30-team NCAA Championship at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. (May 17-22).

Long Beach State's Jasmine Leovao, who finished eighth individually with a three-round total of 218 (+2), also advanced to the national championship as the top individual on a non-advancing team from the regional.

Rachel Heck led a Stanford squad that claimed four of the top-five spots, closing with a 54-hole score of 208 (-8) to claim a four-stroke victory over teammate Kelly Xu (212) on the par-72, 6,306-yard layout of the Tumble Creek Club at the Suncadia Resort in Cle Elum. Stanford's Megha Ganne and Paula Marin Sampedro tied for third with Virginia's Amanda Sambach at 214 (-2).

FOUR HUSKERS HONORED BY THE BIG TEN

Four Nebraska softball players were recognized by the Big Ten on Wednesday when the conference announced its all-conference teams and award winners. Billie Andrews was named to the All-Big Ten first team, Sydney Gray earned second-team All-Big Ten accolades and Samantha Bland was named to the All-Freshman team while Mckinley Malecha was a Big Ten Sportsmanship Award winner.

Andrews was selected as an All-Big Ten performer for the fourth straight season. She is just the eighth Husker to be a four-time all-conference selection and joins MJ Knighten as the only players in program history to be a four-time All-Big Ten honoree. Andrews was named to the All-Big Ten first team for the second straight season and for the third time in her career. Andrews joins Tristen Edwards as the only Huskers to earn three first-team All-Big Ten awards, while Andrews is the 10th player overall in program history to be a three-time first-team all-conference selection.

Andrews was recognized after batting .363 during the regular season with 61 hits, 10 doubles, 15 home runs, 51 runs, 39 RBIs and 15 stolen bases in 47 games. She led Nebraska in eight offensive categories and ranked third in the Big Ten in runs and home runs, fifth in slugging and OPS, sixth in stolen bases and seventh in hits.

Gray was selected to an All-Big Ten team for the first time in her career. She hit .288 during the regular season with 11 doubles, 12 home runs and a team-high 40 RBIs. During the conference season, Gray batted .351 with six doubles, five home runs and 21 RBIs in 21 games. She led the Huskers in hits, extra-base hits, doubles, home runs and RBIs in Big Ten Play. Gray was also chosen as a three-time Big Ten Player of the Week in 2024, tying the conference record for most player-of-the-week awards in a single season.

Bland was recognized as one of the top freshmen in the conference with her appointment to the Big Ten All-Freshman team. Bland hit .290 in the regular season with 47 hits, 14 doubles, six homers and 36 RBIs in 50 games. She is tied for the team lead in doubles and ranks second in RBIs. Bland not only produced at the plate, but she was a versatile player for the Big Red, starting games in left field, center field, second base and shortstop.

Rounding out the Husker honorees was Malecha, a team captain who was Nebraska's recipient of a Big Ten Sportsmanship Award. Malecha has played in 28 games this season with four starts and has scored a career-high 12 runs while producing four RBIs in only 12 at bats. Off the field, Malecha was named to the 2024 Tom Osborne Citizenship Team for her community outreach.

Nebraska Big Ten Honors

  • Billie Andrews, First-Team All-Big Ten
  • Sydney Gray, Second-Team All-Big Ten
  • Samantha Bland, Big Ten All-Freshman Team
  • Mckinely Malecha, Big Ten Sportsmanship Award

SHELLEY MAKES WNBA PRESEASON DEBUT

Nebraska All-Big Ten guard Jaz Shelley made her WNBA preseason debut with the Phoenix Mercury against the Seattle Storm at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle on Tuesday, May 7.

Shelley, who was a three-time all-conference player for the Huskers, played 14 second-half minutes for the Mercury in an 85-59 loss. The 5-9 guard from Moe, Australia recorded a pair of assists along with a rebound and a steal for the Mercury. The 29th overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft also attempted one three-pointer in her debut.

No members of the Mercury played 18 minutes in their preseason debuts, as Christyn Williams (17:20) and Natasha Mack (16:03) were the only players to compete for more than 16 minutes. Starters Diana Taurasi (15:02), Natasha Cloud (14:35), Brittney Griner (14:33) and Kahleah Copper (14:06) all saw similar playing time to Shelley. Taurasi led the Mercury with 10 points on the night as the only player in double figures.

Jewell Loyd led Seattle with 18 points, while Nneka Ogwumike added 15 points.

Shelley and the Mercury continue preseason action on Friday when they play host to the Los Angeles Sparks at the Footprint Center in Phoenix. Tip-off is set for 9 p.m. (CT).

Phoenix opens the regular season at the Las Vegas Aces on Tuesday, May 14 at 9 p.m. (CT) in a game televised live nationally on ESPN2.