The Big Ten Conference announced today that Gopher women’s golfer Teresa Puga has been named Big Ten Conference Player of the Week. This is the first Big Ten Conference weekly award of the season for Puga and the third of her career.

She was awarded her first career weekly award on Feb. 24, 2010, becoming the first Minnesota player to be named player of the week since Terra Petsinger received the conference’s selection on March 24, 2005. Her other weekly award came on March 24, 2010.

Puga, a senior from A Coruña, Spain (Blume HS), used an eagle on the final hole to force a playoff and tie for medalist honors at the 2011 UCF Challenge on Feb. 14. It was the first win of her career and the first Gopher medalist since Young Na Lee won the Diablo Grande Intercollegiate in March of 2008. 

Puga, who holds virtually every scoring record in program history, added to her legacy by carding a program-best 54-hole score of 208 en route to sharing the title. Included in her three-day total was a final round six-under-par 66, which tied a team record set by Julie Gumlia in the spring of 1977.

Minnesota finished third overall at the UCF Challenge with a three-day score of 869, three shots off the lead. That score bested the score of 877 set this fall at the Las Vegas Collegiate and now sits atop the Gophers’ record books.

Up next for the Gophers is a trip to Parrish, Fla. on Feb. 21-22 to take part in the Central District Invitational.