The St. John's men's and women's golf teams are seeded fifth heading into the 2006 BIG EAST Golf Championships. The Championships are set to take place April 24-25 at Lake Jovita Golf and Country Club in Dade City, Fla. The University of South Florida along with Lake Jovita will be first-time hosts of the event.

Sophomore Keegan Bradley (Jackson Hole, Wyo.) will lead the men's golf team's effort at this year's BIG EAST Championships and will look to improve on his ninth place finish during the 2005 Championships. He currently ranks fourth among BIG EAST individuals with a 72.52 scoring average and has four-top 10 finishes this season.

Senior Brian McArdle (Huntington, N.Y.) will also lend leadership to the young team. McArdle carded a 15-over par 85 last season and is making his third trip to the event. Sophomore George Zolotas (Peabody, Mass.) and freshmen Casey Calmi (Douglaston Manor, N.Y.) and Kevin Velardo (Wilmington, Mass.) are competing at their first postseason tournament.

The Red Storm finished second at this spring's Bradford Creek Invitational and third at the Treasure Coast Classic. Bradley has been the low-scorer for St. John's in four out of six and closed the regular season with four consecutive top-10 finishes.

Senior Christin Thomson earned the Individual Championship title at the Hartford Invitational.

"This is a very talented team that has had quite a bit of success this year," said head coach Frank Darby. "We had a chance to see Lake Jovit during spring break and it is a great layout that we can play well on. Every season there is a great story in college golf about a team that gets on a roll and has great run through the NCAA's. We are very close to putting it all together and being that team."

The women's team will be looking to defend its 2005 BIG EAST Championship title where four of its five golfers finished in the top-10. The Red Storm was led by senior Christin Thomson (Ft. Frances, Ontario, Canada) who carded a six-over par 78 to take third place.

Thomson has led St. John's in three out of four events this spring and recently earned the Individual Championship title at the Hartford Invitational. Her first place finish helped the Red Storm take its first NCAA win of the season in its final event of the regular season. The team will look to take that momentum into the BIG EAST Championships and repeat for its second consecutive conference title.

Sophomore Brittany Lambertson (Northport, N.Y.) was also key in St. John's win at the Hartford Invitational as she took second with a 157. In her first BIG EAST Championship appearance, she carded a 13-over par 85, coming in sixth place.

Seniors Jaclyn Sanders (Brights Grove, Ontario, Canada) and Maggie Steciuk (London, Ontario, Canada) also return from last season's championship team. Sanders worked her way to a fourth place finish while Steciuk came in 19th. Classmate Katie Lebel (Mooretown, Ontario, Canda) will be making her first trip to the event.

"We are looking forward to the BIG EAST Championships and defending our title," said head coach Ambry Bishop. "If our team plays to our ability, I look for us to go in there and have a great tournament."

The men's teams competing at the 2006 BIG EAST Championships will also be vying for an automatic bid to the NCAA Golf Championships. The conference does not hold an automatic berth on the women's side, though a strong showing at this event could help the team earn an at-large big. The women's league will be eligible for an automatic qualification in 2008.

The seven individuals on both the men's and women's teams with the lowest 54-hole score at the conclusion of the event will be selected as members of the All-BIG EAST Team. 36 holes will played on Monday with the final 18 to be completed on Tuesday.

On the men's side, Louisville, Notre Dame and Marquette are the top three seeds in the tournament. Louisville and Notre Dame are both nationally ranked at 48 and 53, respectively while Marquette captured titles at both the BIG EAST/MAC Challenge and the Cardinal Intercollegiate.

Notre Dame takes the top seed in the women's league as the school is ranked No. 56 in the country. USF and Louisville round out the top three seeds in the tournament.

The 2006 BIG EAST Championships will be scored live on Golf Stat's website. For an update every nine holes, please visit www.golfstat.com.

- Red Storm -