The No. 11 LSU women’s golf team won its season opening tournament at the NGCA/Hooter’s Collegiate Match Play Championship nearly three weeks ago.But since winning the opening event of a season for the first time since 2004, LSU women’s golf coach Karen Bahnsen has preached to her team to not get caught up in the moment.”We’ve had [time], so we’ve put that behind us,” Bahnsen said. “You can’t dwell on it — you just use it to build confidence.”The Lady Tigers have a chance to build on their success when they travel to Franklin, Tenn., today to compete in the Mason Rudolph Championships at the Vanderbilt Legends Club.LSU, who edged then-No. 8 Auburn, 3.5-1.5, in the championship round of the Match Play tournament, will face similar competition when it tees off at 8 a.m.The three-day, 54-hole tournament features 12 ranked teams, including eight of the top 10 teams in the country.LSU will compete against No. 1 Arizona State, No. 2 USC, No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 Oklahoma State, No. 7 Alabama, No. 8 Auburn, No. 9 Virginia and No. 10 Duke, among others.The field has an NCAA tournament-type feel, but Bahnsen said the quality of the field does not intimidate her.”We just want to go out and play,” she said. “I don’t care where they are from.”Freshman Mary Michael Maggio will try and prove her first collegiate performance wasn’t a fluke after playing a pivotal role in securing the Match Play title for the Lady Tigers.Bahnsen said she was excited with the Conway, Ark., native’s performance and the way she handled pressure.”I knew obviously when I recruited her that she was a good player … but I was pleased with the way she played right off the bat,” Bahnsen said.While Maggio impressed in her first outing for the Tigers, one veteran expects to rebound from a mediocre performance.Junior Megan McChrystal shot an 80 in the first round of stroke play at the Match Play Championship before bouncing back with a 71 in the second round.”She put a little pressure on herself to start out the season,” Bahnsen said. “That’s not an issue … she will play well.”Bahnsen said McChrystal and Maggio, along with juniors Amalie Valle and Lindy LaBauve, and sophomore Jacqueline Hedwall, all need to have consistent scores every weekend for LSU to be successful.”That’s how we are going to win the tournaments we are in, especially tournaments like this with all the best teams in the country,” Bahnsen said. “If you don’t all perform well, you’re not going to have a chance at winning a tournament. It’s that competitive right now.”MEN OPEN SEASON IN WASHINGTONThe No. 18 LSU men’s golf team begins its season Sunday at the PING/Golfweek Invitational in Bremerton, Wash.The 7,142-yard, par-72 course at Gold Mountain Golf Club will play host to four of the top five teams in the country, according to the Golf World/Nike Golf Coaches’ Poll — No. 1 Oklahoma State, who won the event in 2008, No. 2 Washington, No. 4 Alabama and No. 5 Arizona State.LSU enters the tournament with a target on its back, boasting one of the nation’s top golfers in John Peterson.Peterson was dubbed with a preseason No. 8 ranking by Golfweek following a standout campaign last year, earning second-team All-America honors.The two-day tournament is set to begin Sunday morning, with tee times to be announced this weekend.- – – -Contact Sean Isabella at [email protected]