Smith Cards 5-under, 67; Duke Shoots 3-under to Close the ANNIKA Intercollegiate

LAKE ELMO, Minn. – Led by a 5-under-par, 67, by graduate student Andie Smith, the preseason sixth-ranked Duke women’s golf team fired a 3-under, 285, Wednesday to close action at the ANNIKA Intercollegiate presented by 3M, which was played at the 6,395-yard, par-72 Royal Golf Club in Lake Elmo. 
 
Duke’s three other counting scores were by freshman Avery McCrery with a career-low, 72, while junior Katie Li and freshman Rianne Malixi signed for a 1-over, 73. 
 
Smith, a native of Hobe Sound, Fla., turned in seven birdies and tied for the second-lowest score of the tournament with a 67.  It marked her 37th career round of even or under par and her 18th career round in the 60s. 
 
A product of Basking Ridge, N.J., Li turned in rounds of 75, 70 and 73 for a 2-over-par, 218, as she finished with a team-best tied for 19th placement.  It marked the second year in a row Li placed in the top 20 of the season-opening event. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED – ROUND THREE

• For the third day in a row, Duke opened action on hole No. 10.
• Andie Smith was dialed in early with her irons as she featured birdie putts of five feet, three feet and one foot on holes No. 14, No. 15 and No. 18, respectively, as she made the turn with a bogey-free, 33.  She moved to 4-under as she hit her 3-wood to the front greenside, chipped to two feet for birdie on the par-5 second hole.  Smith suffered back-to-back bogeys to drop two shots on No. 3 and No. 4, but closed with three birdies over her final five holes to finish with a 67. 
• Rookie Avery McCrery had her putter working early in her round Wednesday as she sank a 70-footer for birdie on No. 11 and 12-footer for birdie on No. 12 to get to 2-under.After a bogey on No. 14, McCrery hit her 54-degree wedge from 62 yards to 10 feet for birdie on No. 18 to make the turn at 2-under, 34.She dropped three shots on the back nine, before closing with birdies on No. 6 and No. 18 to finish the day with an even-par, 72.McCrery hit 16 greens on the round.
• Katie Li opened her day by draining a 25-foot birdie on No. 12, but ended up making the turn with a 2-over, 38. She finished strong by sinking a 4-footer for birdie on No. 2 and then hit her 7-iron from 159 yards to four feet on No. 7 to finish with a 73.  Li hit 14 greens on the day.
• After a sluggish start to her round, freshman Rianne Malixi caught fire the rest of the day.She played her final 14 holes at 3-under-par as she finished with a 73.A product of Manila, Philippines,…