The Penn State women's golf team has become accustomed to good finishes this season.

It doesn't want to end its trend this weekend when it travels to North Carolina for the Landfall Tradition hosted by UNC-Wilmington.

The tournament is the last one of the fall season for the Nittany Lions and starts at 8 a.m. today at the Landfall Country Club.

The team is coming off a ninth-place finish at the Mercedes Invitational in Tennessee. The Lions have played in four tournaments and have finished in the top 10 in each one. Junior Maggie Lester was the top individual performer at Mercedes for the Lions, placing 10th.

Like last week's Mercedes, the Landfall Tradition is another big event for the team and is important for its standings in the East Region.

Penn State women's golf coach Denise St. Pierre recognizes the fact that a good finish this weekend would take some pressure off the team during its spring schedule.

"If we don't do well [in this tournament], we'll have more work to do in the spring," St. Pierre said. "We can be more relaxed if we do well."

This weekend will not be easy for the Lions, though, as several of the teams in the field are in the top 20 or 30. Wake Forest, Virginia and Tulane, all members of the East Region, will be present in the tournament.

The starters for this tournament will remain the same as all of the other tournaments the Lions have played in. Seniors Amber Weinerth and Lauren Lundy, junior Maggie Lester and Evelyn Paik and sophomore Sara Lester will be playing this weekend.

All members of the current starting lineup for the Lions right now will be back in the spring.

Unfortunately, the team cannot practice on the golf course all year round, giving an advantage to southern schools.

But that doesn't mean the Lions will be dormant during the months of November through February.

"We'll still go out and play when weather permits," St. Pierre said.

"We also have a pretty extensive workout program after the winter break. Like most Penn State teams, we practice year-round."

The 2005-06 season has already been a success for the Lions, and they're only halfway through. Starting the year ranked 55th, they have jumped to 32nd place, a significant jump.

In 2006, the Lions will also be playing in some big events. Beginning in March, the team travels to California.

The Big Ten Championship is in April and leads to the team's ultimate goal: the NCAA Regionals and the eventual NCAA Championship in May.

The team hopes to end its fall season on a good note with a strong finish in North Carolina.