BOULDER CITY, Nev. - Coach Lisa Johnson had a front-row seat for Sophie Hausmann's second round at the Big Sky Conference Golf Championships.

And what a round it was. Hausmann, a freshman from Germany, tied the University of Idaho record and set the Big Sky tournament record with a seven-under-par 65. Not only did she vault into second place with one round to play but she carried the Vandals with her as they head into Wednesday's final 18 with a four-stroke advantage over Northern Arizona.

"The thing that Sophie did best was she played within herself and allowed herself to stay in the present and focus on one shot at a time," Johnson said. "She just stayed with the plan."

As a team, Idaho shot a two-under 286 for a two-day total 581. NAU is at 585 with Sacramento State right behind at 586. The Vandals went into the second 18 trailing by five strokes but thanks to Hausmann and senior Kristin Strankman, who had a one-under 71, they moved to the front of the pack.

Hausmann's round included a run of three birdies (one par-3, one par-4 and one par-5) for a three-under 33 on the front. Her back nine included a similar run only this time it was four successive holes (two par-4, one par-3 and one par-5) for a 32 on the back.

"Her speed on the greens was excellent," Johnson said. "At least five of her putts were 15 feet or more,"

Strankman, a senior from Richland, Wash., had 11 successive pars before recording her first birdie on the 145-yard, par-3 12th. She stumbled a bit with bogeys at 14 and 16 before closing with birdies on 17 and 18 for her one-under 71.

Freshman Michelle Kim (Surrey, B.C.) added another 74 to her opening 74 for a four-over 148, while senior Cassie McKinley (Shoreline, Wash.) is at five-over 149 and sophomore Kendall Gray (Tacoma, Wash.) is at seven-over 151.

"We're excited to be in the lead," said Johnson, drawing a parallel between this week and the Vandals' victory two weeks ago at the Wyoming Cowgirl Classic. "We were in this position a week and a half ago and we handled it very well.

"Everyone is in a good place mentally. We'll go out and give it our all."