Though the winds were bitter and the temperatures frigid, the BG women’s golf team put together arguably their finest performance of the season last weekend, turning in a 36-hole total of 659 to place fifth out of eleven teams at the Falcon Invitational.

For BG, the finish was made all the more satisfying since it came in front of numerous family and friends at Stone Ridge Golf Club.

“I just wanted to thank everyone who came out and supported us,” said coach Stephanie Young. “It was a terrific event. For the second straight week, I thought our team was pretty solid from top to bottom; to finish in the top half of an eleven team field is very exciting for us.”

The fifth-place finish would be hard earned, however, as the golfers had to brave blustery, cold conditions on Saturday that wreaked havoc with the leaderboard.

All told, only five players in the field of 65 broke 80 in the first round, as the winds were sustained around 30 mph and the wind chill dipped south of 40 degrees.

The Falcons emerged from the rubble, however, tied for fourth with a respectable 333, placing them right in the thick of the chase heading into Sunday.

Susy Grunden was only five off the individual lead after an 80, while Lauren Glew was also solidly positioned with an 83.

The conditions were far more benign for Sunday’s final round, and the players took advantage, throwing up 15 rounds in the 70s.

One of those rounds was turned in by Grunden, who nearly holed out from the fairway for eagle at the last hole, before settling for birdie and a round of 76, giving her a tie for fifth at 12-over par 156.

Grunden’s scoring average now rests only percentage points away from Jenny Schnipke’s single-season record of 78.54 set in 2003-04.

While occupying a place in BG history has certainly entered the freshman’s mind, it pales in comparison to the significance of the upcoming event.

“I’ve thought a little bit about how nice it would be to have the record,” Grunden said. “But I am much more focused on preparing myself for the MAC Championship and seeing what I can do against the best players in the conference.”

Getting ready will be made much easier since her putting woes have, at least temporarily, subsided.

After struggling all weekend on the greens at Eastern Kentucky, Grunden got around Stone Ridge on Sunday with a tidy 28 putts.

“I was so happy to see my putting come back,” Grunden said. “Even though I didn’t hit the ball as well as I wanted, I’ll take that any day over bad putting. I think my full-swing is much easier to fix.”

The Falcons also boasted some more solid finishes.

Lauren Glew finished in a tie for 17th at 164 after backing up her 83 with an 81.

Freshman Amy Ruthenberg shot 85-85 to finish tied for 32nd at 169.

Marisa Glew recorded her highest finish since September, firing matching 85s to finish one shot back of Ruthenberg at 170, and senior Hannah Lambert, playing in the next-to-last tournament of her career, shot 89-86 to come in at 175, tied for 48th.

Young said the all-around good play was very encouraging. She knows the Falcons will need all hands on deck to take home a high finish this weekend.

“Our execution the past couple of weeks has been the best we’ve had all season,” Young said. “For one more week, we just need more of the same.”