WGOLF to Wrap Up Fall Season in Vegas
10/24/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
SPOKANE, Wash.—After three tournaments already in the last month and a half, the Gonzaga University women's golf team will wrap up its fall season at the Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown early next week at Boulder Creek Golf Club in Boulder City, Nev.
The Zags will be playing in yet another tournament that's new to them, their third of the fall. The Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown is hosted by UNLV and will feature a solid field of competing teams. The Rebels are ranked No. 13 according to the most recent Golf Stat rankings, and San Diego State is No. 22, seven spots ahead of Gonzaga at No. 29. Seven more schools are in the top 75 according to Golf Stat, and 16 of the 18 competitors are ranked in the top 100.
Gonzaga last competed at the fog-shortened Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational at Sahalee Country Club Oct. 7-8. The squad took fourth at the UW-hosted tournament, the Zags' best finish so far this season. Three Zags—Raychelle Santos, Ciera Min, and Dania Uy—all finished among the top 25, and since then, the entire team's been working to be able to replicate that performance.
"We've worked hard since UW, and we've worked a lot on the golf swings," said Gonzaga head coach Brad Rickel. "It's been a good two, three weeks of practice. "By the time we leave, everyone will be 100% ready for this tournament."
Rickel will use the same lineup that placed fourth at the Edean Ihlanfeldt. Santos will be the No. 1 golfer again for the Zags. She's topped the lineup for all three tournaments already this fall. Min will be the Zags' second golfer off the tee in Las Vegas as the sophomore has already tallied three top-25 finishes. No other Zag has done that this year.
Third for the Zags, Alice Kim will provide a bit of senior leadership in the lineup. Kim's finished in the top 25 twice this season, tying for 12th in her best tournament so far. Uy, a freshman, is fourth for the Zags at the Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown. Like Kim, she also has two top 25 finishes and also has a top finish of T-12.
Rounding out the Zags' lineup this weekend, Angela De Villa will be playing in her third tournament of the year. She helped the team take fourth at the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational a couple weeks ago and also competed at the Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Invite in September.
Those five will be playing three rounds at Boulder Creek Golf Club on a course that will play 6,230 yards with a par of 72. The tournament will run over three days, from Sunday, Oct. 26 to Tuesday, Oct. 28
"The team is excited for a desert course," said Rickel. "Sahalee has a way of beating you up with its narrow, tree-lined fairways. They're excited to play something a bit more open and warmer."
Live stats for the Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown may be found at https://www.birdiefire.com/tournament/6601/.
