Erin White may be the best Penn State athlete you have never heard of.

White, a freshman, happens to be a member of the women's golf team, and after only two collegiate tournaments has the lowest scoring average and, quite possibly, is the top player on the team.

White began golfing at the tender age of eight, and by the time she was 12 she had already begun to compete in and win tournaments.

White continued to golf throughout high school. She was the No. 1 player on her team all four years, and was a four-time district champ. As a senior she came away with a 3rd place finish in the Pennsylvania State Tournament.

At 16, she became the youngest player ever to win the Erie District Women's Golf Association Championship. She came back to win it again the following year, beating her best friend and current teammate, Jennifer Eberlein.

White, who was also recruited by Ohio State and Central Florida, chose Penn State because of the campus and the coaches.

"I love it. I'm really glad I came here. I went to Ohio State and I really didn't like it, and I don't like Florida," White said.

Coach Denise St. Pierre is also glad White came here. In her first two collegiate tournaments she has been Penn State's top golfer. She has shown remarkable consistency, not having shot a round over 82.

"She has a lot of natural kind of toughness. She's very composed when she plays. You can tell she's confident," St. Pierre said.

Even though White has played well, she isn't going to rest on her laurels.

"I played pretty well, but I know I can play better than that. I'm still making dumb mistakes," White said.

White has set her goals high. She says she wants to be an NCAA All-American, and be in the top 10 in the Big Ten.

As for her first four weeks at Penn State, White is enjoying everything but the traveling.

"It's everything I thought it would be," White said.

White and her teammates are currently in East Lansing, Mich., for the Lady Spartan Open, which begins today and runs through Sunday.

St. Pierre is bringing a different group of girls with her, hoping to find the combination that will play best together. White, Colleen Scally, and Sherri McDonald, all of whom made the last two trips, are competing. Lynne Percival, Pam Nicholson and Martha Wells round out the six golfers making the trip.