As winter turns to spring and the bitter cold of central Pennsylvania gives way to warmer weather, the Penn State women's golf team will head back to the links to begin its 2002 spring competitive season.

The Nittany Lions, who got their 2001-2002 season underway this fall with four tournaments in September and October, will open up the spring season Feb. 25 and 26 at the Carolina Collegiate Classic, in Pinehurst, N.C.

After a disappointing ninth-place Big Ten finish during the 2000 season, the Lions experienced some success in the fall portion of their 2001 slate. Penn State enjoyed three top-four finishes, highlighted by placing second out of 13 teams at the Chip-N-Club Invitational in Lincoln, Nebraska, and by winning the Nittany Lion Invitational in University Park.

"Last year, finishing ninth certainly wasn't where we thought we would've been," Penn State women's golf coach Denise St. Pierre said.

"We're definitely looking to be in the top half of the Big Ten this time around."

Moving from near the bottom of any conference to the top half is never easy, especially in the ultra-competitive Big Ten.

"It's stronger than ever this year, ironically," St. Pierre said. "We have several teams in the conference that are in the top 20 nationally.

"Right now, you're looking at Ohio State and Michigan who have been doing very well. Purdue is always strong, and Michigan State has been very strong lately as well.

If the Lions are to give any of the conference's top teams a run for their money, it will be done mainly with youth. Of the top six golfers in St. Pierre's lineup, three are juniors and three are sophomores.

"In my experience of being around players at different levels of their careers, I like younger teams," St. Pierre said.

Juniors Keri Dugan, Meghan Mull and Cynthia Skilton, along with sophomores Rosemarie Fuster, Katie Futcher and Susan Oliver, will make up the starting lineup.

"If I had a team of five seniors, it might be good, because we've all had experience and been here before," St. Pierre said. "But sometimes, depending on who they are, they put some extra pressure on themselves because this is it. You've got to do it now or never."

Of course, the team's ultimate goal will be to perform well at the Big Ten Championships, held this year at the University of Illinois. If the Lions are to do so, Futcher will be a big part of their success.

Futcher emerged last fall as a force for the Lions, placing in the Top 5 three times in Penn State's four tournaments, and setting a course record at the Lady Northern Invitational. It would be of no surprise to her coach if she picked up right where she left off.

"Katie is a very disciplined player. She practices hard, she works hard, and she really, really wants it," St. Pierre said. "I hope that she continues to lead the team and be one of our stronger participants."

When it comes to team leaders both on and off the golf course, St. Pierre had one player in particular in mind. That would be Mull, a redshirt junior and team co-captain along with Futcher.

"Meghan's been around for four years and has a great idea of what's going on," the 10th-year head coach said. "She's a good student, she was an academic All-American last year, and she's a good role model for the rest of the players on the team."

Mull doesn't only understand the role that she has to take on as one of the team's experienced veterans, she thrives at it.

"With three years of experience, I know what to expect, and what it takes to become a better golfer to make this team better," Mull said.

A freshman herself just three years ago, Mull certainly knows that having good team leaders helps make things easier for everyone involved.

"It's important to me to set a good example," she said. "I think if you show the freshmen and other incoming people where you have to be, that'll only help them in the long run."

St. Pierre knows her team has been working hard to prepare for the upcoming season, especially with their first meet only a few days away.

"As a coach, I'm excited about starting," St. Pierre said. "I feel somewhat grateful that we've had a chance in the last few weeks to be outside a couple of times."

With any luck, the temperature and the elements down in Pinehurst will be much less severe than those of a State College winter, and the 2002 golf season will be underway.