University of Tampa women's golf coach Missey Jones wanted her team to experience more than Florida, and if you're going to travel all the way to western Colorado for a tournament, you might as well make it an adventure.
The Spartans flew to Denver on Friday and drove through the mountains, making a pitstop in Glenwood Springs at the suggestion of Colorado Mesa coach Scott Hansen. Hansen joked he hoped playing at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park might rattle the players just enough that they wouldn't play their best in the RMAC Fall Preview on Monday and Tuesday at Tiara Rado Golf Course.
Yeah, that didn't happen.
"We have no classes on Friday and we wanted to get acclimated," Jones said. "Some kids who live around here got altitude sickness from other teams. We flew to Denver, drove through the mountains, stopped in Vail and got ice cream and rode the tram up (Vail Mountain) and then went to (Glenwood Caverns) and had a blast in Glenwood Springs."
Then it was on to Grand Junction for a practice round Sunday.
Led by two-time All-American Kiira Riihijarvi, a junior from Oulu, Finand, the Spartans ran away with the team championship by 10 strokes over CSU-Pueblo and Dixie State.
Riihijarvi, who recently returned from Ireland, where she played for Finland in the World Amateur Team Championship, shot a course-record 63 on Monday and followed it with a 67 on Tuesday for a 12-under-par 130 and a 16-stroke victory.
Riihijarvi had only three bogeys in the tournament, all on Tuesday, but negated those with five birdies and an eagle-3 on the par-5, 525-yard 13th hole.
"I was putting really well," she said. "I was hitting the ball decently. I really like the course, especially the back nine; it really fits me that I know I can kind of play well on that side. It's more open.
"If I can survive the front nine, I know I can go at it on the back nine. I was putting really well and making a lot of birdies."
Colorado Mesa finished ninth in the 17-team field, cutting four strokes off its first round. Ashlyn Kirschner tied for 24th, shooting a second-round 81 to finish at 157. Randi Kim and Hannah More tied for 28th, one stroke back, but both improved on their first round. Kim shot a 78, More a 76 in the second round.
The day, though, belonged to Riihijarvi, who placed seventh in the Division II national championships last spring.
Jones is a former women's basketball coach at Colorado State, and started Tampa's women's golf program eight years ago. Plenty of fundraising allowed the Spartans to make the trip.
"We could never leave Florida; we're the No. 1 conference in the country, but I wanted my kids to see out west and have a new experience," Jones said. "Plus, it's hurricane season in Florida right now. Last year we had to evacuate. I want them to have a lot of experiences, we just haven't had the money."
Riihijarvi and her teammates were ready for more adventures before returning to Tampa.
"We're heading back (to Glenwood Springs) for a hiking trip," Jones said.
As for Riihijarvi, it was her first trip to Colorado, but it might not be her last, especially after the drive through the Rocky Mountains.
"I wouldn't mind spending a summer here or something," she said.
