Putting up respectable numbers in sunny Florida over spring break, NIU women’s golfers were back on the green for the first time since their fall season ended in October.

The week began with a visit to the Springlake Country Club in Sebring, Fla., for the Springlake Intercollegiate tournament. The Huskies fared well in their spring opener, finishing with an overall team score of 662 and 13th place out of 16 teams.

Leading the way for NIU was junior Allison Beam, who shot a 161, 17 over par. Juniors Tara Hawkins, Michelle Hupfer and Jamie Kinkead all fired 168s, rounding out the top four finishers for the Huskies.

Coach Pam Tyska was pleased with her team’s performance this early in the season.

“This is a great finish for us considering that we hadn’t taken a divot since October,” Tyska said. “Two years ago, this same group finishes 20 strokes higher.”

The next stop on the Huskies’ spring break adventure was Orlando for the Spalding-Peggy Bell Kirk Invitational at the Tuscawilla Country Club.

NIU finished in the middle of the pack, ending in ninth place out of 15 teams with a single-round 328. The tournament was held to a single round of golf, as bad weather postponed the second round long enough for it to be canceled.

The Huskies were led by Kinkead, who fired 79 — 7 over par and 17th place overall. Beam grabbed 28th place with a 9-over-par 81, while Hupfer and sophomore Amanda Mapley rounded out the top 50 by each shooting an 84.

The end of the week landed the Huskies in Tampa for the 15th annual NIU Snowbird Intercollegiate at the Pebblecreek Country Club. NIU finished 11th out of 17 teams with a two-round total of 662.

Leading the Huskies this time was Hupfer, who golfed a two-round total of 163, finishing in a tie for 26th place. At 165, Beam and Hawkins tied for 39th place to round out the top 50 for the Huskies.

Assistant coach Kara Giannetto wasn’t at all disappointed with the team’s performance for the week.

“To have four of our five players improve today is impressive considering that we have played 10 straight rounds with no golf outside prior to October,” she said.

The Huskies have the next three weeks off and will return to action April 7 at the Western Michigan Invitational.