RACHEL WALKER FROM DUMFRIES FINISHES TIED FIFTH IN ALABAMA

GEMMA DRYBURGH BOOSTS CURTIS 

 CUP HOPES WITH 2nd PLACE FINISH

        GEMMA DRYBURGH, holding the trophy, and her winning Tulane University team-mates

By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Colin@scottishgolfview.com
Aberdeen-born Gemma Dryburgh, a final-year student at Tulane University, New Orleans, boosted her hopes of playing for GB and I in the Curtis Cup match at St Louis, Missouri in June, by finishing second in a field of 65 players on Wednesday in the Conference-USA Women's Championship at The Peninsula Golf and Racquet Club, Gulf Shores in Alabama.
Gemma, runner-up in last year's British women's stroke-play championship at Prestwick and in the South American women's championship since then, shot rounds of 68, 72 and 71 for a five-under-par total of 211 over the 6,145yd (par 72) course.
She finished four shots behind the winner, Fabiola Arriaga (Texas-San Antonio) (68-69-70 for 207).
Dryburgh can make the GB and I team - to be announced on May 6 - by being one of the four leading eligible players in the Women's World Amateur Rankings, or one of the two leading players, not otherwise selected, in the Ladies Golf Union Order of Merit, or by being one of the two wild-card selections by the LGU International Selection Panel.  
The WAGR system does not favour players on the US college circuit so Gemma's best chance of being selected may be as a wild-card pick. 
Gemma's performance helped Tulane lead from wire-to-wire and claim the sixth C-USA title in school history, including its fourth in the last six years (2009, 2010, 2013).
Tulane - "The Green Wave" - lowered their own  C-USA tournament record for the lowest 54-hole total with an 8-under 856 aggregate which was also the second-lowest in school history.
Dryburgh was one of three Tulane team members
named to the C-USA All-Tournament Team. 
"One of our goals at the beginning of the season was to repeat as Conference USA Champions," Tulane head coach Lorne Don said: "I am very proud of the team and excited for our players to see all their hard work pay off with a championship defence."
Tulane (856) outdistanced second-placed Texas-San Antonio (866), while Middle Tennessee (879) were third.  Florida International and Old Dominion (both 881) tied for fourth in a field od 13 teams.
With the win, Tulane won the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals, which will be announced on Monday, April 28. 
There were nine students from the UK in the C-USA Conference Championship field.

Rachel Walker (Old Dominion), from Dumfries, is finishing her freshman year on a high. Rachel, pictured, finished T5 on level par 216 with scores of 72, 70 and 74.
ODU team-mate Elizabeth Haycock, a senior from Birmingham finished T9 on 218 (74-75-69).
Curtis Cup team place chaser Meghan MacLaren (Florida International), from Wellingborough, Cambridge, finished T12 on 219 with scores of 76, 71 and 72. 
Brogan Townend (Texas-San Antonio), a sophomore from Blackburn, shot 73-75-72 for 220 and a T16 finish.
Kim Bradbury (Old Dominion), a senior from Buxton, Derbyshire, finished T29 on 225 (74-75-76), the same mark as Florida International's Sophie Godley, a sophomore from Notts, with scores of 72, 76 and 77.
Charlotte Hindmoor (Old Dominion), a sophomore from Darlington), shot 77-72-79 for T35 on 228 while Holly Robinson (Alabama-Birmingham), a junior from Sligo, Northern Ireland, scored 73, 83 and 80 for 236 and T51 in a field of 65.

EMILY DOWN THE FIELD AT DALLAS

Perth's Emily Aird, a freshman student at

Newman University, Wichita in Kansas, finished T23 in a field of 33 players at the Heartland Conference Championship at Summit Rock Golf Club, Dallas, Texas on Wednesday.
She had rounds of 84 and 83 for 167 over a par-72 course of 5,810yd, finishing 25 shots behind the joint winners.

JESSICA CARTY'S FIRST TOP 10 FINISH

FOR DENVER IN USA 

For whatever reason, Scotland cap Rachel Watton (Mortonhall) was not in the Denver University team of five for the Summit League Women's Championship at Sky Creek, Ranch Golf Club, Keller, Texas this week.
But the Denver team still filled the first three places and had all five in the top eight.
Norwegian Tonje Daffinrud won with scores of 74, 74 and 71 for 219 - two ahead of team-mate Marielle Brun (72-74-75) with Elyse Smidinger, also Denver, third on 223 (75-78-70)
Jessica Carty, from Rory McIlroy country - Holywood near Belfast. a freshman student at Denver, achieved her first top-10 finish in the States.

The 2012 Irish Under-18 girls' champion, pictured right, had scores of 74, 75 and 86 for 235  and joint 
eighth place. But for that final round, Jessica would have finished much closer to her team-mates.
Denver won the team title by a record margin of 71 shots in a field of eight tea,s/