Prange Seeks NCAA Top-10 Finish

As a sophomore in 2001-02, she earned All-ACC status playing in her second season at the No. 1 slot for the North Carolina women's golf team and carding top-10 finishes in five tournaments.

This type of early success would lure many athletes into complacency, but after the first few weeks of her junior campaign, it is clear that Prange is on a mission to become even better.

Heading into this week's tournament, the Pine Needles Intercollegiate, in Southern Pines she has emerged as one of the best female players in college golf.

Last month, the Indiana native notched her first collegiate victory at the Mercedes-Benz Classic in Knoxville, Tenn., and finished in the top 10 at the Lady Paladin Invitational in Greenville, S.C., and the Franklin Street Trust Tar Heel Invitational at Finley Golf Course earlier this fall.

Prange currently is the 13th ranked female golfer in the NCAA.

"It was definitely well deserved," she said of her victory last month. "I had a feeling this year was the year that I was going to be able to do it. It was a nice bonus, because I've been working pretty hard toward it."

Prange has been preparing for success on the golf course her entire life.

Her father, Bob, is a PGA professional in Indiana and coached at Purdue from 1995 to 1998.

She began playing golf competitively when she was just 10 years old.

"It's kind of ingrained in the family DNA," Prange said. "It's just kind of one those things you just do in my family."

Her hard work has already led her to a tremendous amateur career.

She won the 2002 Indiana Women's State Open, in addition to the 2000 Indiana Women's Amateur Championship.

As a high school golfer, Prange was a medalist in the U.S. Golf Association Girl's Qualifier from 1997 to 1999.

"She has a big advantage from all of her experience," said North Carolina women's golf coach Sally Austin. "She learns through experience, and she's played a lot of golf. It gives her a lot of confidence on the golf course."

In recent tournaments, Prange has been able to combine this wealth of golf savvy with a more aggressive style of play.

With two years of experience under her belt, Prange is confidently maturing into one of the more dominant players in college golf.

"I'm approaching tournaments a little more aggressively and competitively than I have in the past just because I definitely know I can have an impact on the field every time I step in," she said.

"I look to go into every tournament looking for a win now."

Prange is well on her way to meeting some of the lofty goals she set for herself at the beginning of the season.

She said she hopes she can finish ranked in the top 10 in the NCAA, and achieve All-America status.

"I really want that goal, and I'm going to work hard to get it," Prange said.

"I really want to crack the top 10, and what it's basically going to boil down to is how much work I put in during the off-season."

Prange's steady improvement is allowing her to set her sights on even more ambitious achievements beyond collegiate golf.

She is already entertaining the possibility of continuing her career at the professional level.

"I think she can play at the next level if she wants to," Austin said. "But right now I think her sights are on getting as good as she can get, winning as much as she can win and playing as well as she can play at the college level.

"I know she wants to be an All-American, and she wants to win a bunch of tournaments. I think she's going to do all of that."

The Sports Editor can be reached at sports@unc.edu.