Junior Brielle Ward (74-73-79 – 228) finished in the top 15 overall and led the Huskies to a top five finish at the Mary Fossum Invitational Saturday and Sunday.

Head Coach Kim Kester said the team did not play their best and will benefit from practice time in the upcoming weeks.

“It’s kind of disappointing because the girls worked so hard and it [would have] meant the world for the to see their hard work pay off but,” Kester said. “It is nice to have a month off before our next event to regroup and work on almost every aspect of the game.”

The Huskies were led by a 13th place finish from Ward and a top 25 finish from junior Kelly Anderson (79-77-77 – 233). Sophomore Isabella Samudio finished in the top 30 (79-76-81 – 236).

Kester said the golf course was set up tough for the players and it was difficult to make birdies with the conditions.

“Some of the pins were tucked [away] and we went at some where maybe we should not have,” Kester said. “It’s [important to know] when to go at things and when to be aggressive.”

The Huskies shot a 314 in the third round of play, which prohibited them from contending for a chance at winning the tournament.

Kester said the team needs to put this event behind them and that it’s all about how the team responds to it moving forward.

“We just didn’t have our best performance [this week],” Kester said. “It’s all about letting things go and how we rebound from here.”

Kester said she has happy to see Ward play well after not having her best rounds in the first two tournaments.

“It was great to see her play well this week,” Kester said. “She had a roller coaster final round but it was good to see her bounce back and play well.”

The team will have a month off before taking their clubs out west to Santa Ana Country Club in Santa Ana, California.

Kester said she is not worried about taking a month off of tournament play and hopes it will benefit the players.

“I think [the break] is going to make the team more eager to get out there and keep practicing and getting their games [to where they want to be].”

The Huskies will pick things up at the UC Irvine Invitational Oct. 30-31 in Santa Ana, California.