They might be putting away their putters for now, but come springtime, Boston University golf figures to be a team on the rise in America East this season.

BU battled adverse weather conditions to place third out of eight teams this weekend at the Sacred Heart Fall Classic Invitational in Milford, Conn., the final tournament of the fall season for the Terriers.

“It was probably the most difficult course we’ve played all season,” said BU coach Tom Varnum, who was named to his post in August. “[It was a] good challenge for our team.”

Winds gusting upward of 45 miles per hour wreaked havoc for golfers all weekend, boosting some scores past the point of respectability. On Sunday, the first day of the two-day tournament, weather conditions forced the women to play conservatively.

Although the golfers heard weather might be an issue going into the match, Varnum said they had no idea what they were up against until tee-off.

“You really can’t know until you get to the course,” he said. “You really just have to adjust to the conditions.

“We played some good golf in some very difficult conditions,” he added.

Leading Terrier scorer, freshman Ana Johnson, shot a tournament third-best 167 over the two rounds.

Johnson, who opened the tournament by shooting an 88 on Sunday, was the breakout star Monday when she fired a 79, highlighted by three birdies. Junior Lauren Stong shot an 87 on Sunday and posted the Terriers’ best score on the day. Stong, who finished 15th overall, shot a 95 on Monday for a combined score of 182.

Fairleigh Dickinson University finished first and Central Connecticut State University took second in the tournament. Varnum said FDU’s strong start on Sunday set it up to win the tournament.

“[FDU was] ahead of us by 18 strokes by the end of the first day, so they had a pretty sizeable lead,” Varnum said. “They had a very good first day.”

Varnum said the results of the fall season’s four tournaments against smaller schools — in which BU placed first once, third once and 12th twice — have been indicative of the team’s solid play this year.

When BU faced larger Division I schools in more competitive tournaments, though, they placed somewhere in the “middle of the pack,” Varnum said.

“So we still have some room for improvement,” Varnum said. “It’s always a challenge as a golf program in the Northeast because of the weather, [and then] going up against some of the Southern teams that get to play golf pretty much year round.”