WGOLF Schedule a Mix of Old and New
8/17/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
2016-17 Women's Golf Schedule
SPOKANE, Wash.--The Gonzaga women's golf team will see plenty of familiar tournaments during the 2016-17 season, but there's also three new competitions on the slate, headlined by a home match play tournament in early October.
"It's a little different this year," said Brad Rickel, GU head women's golf coach, of the new slate. "The strength of schedule will stay really good, and we also mix in some new stuff so we can stay fresh and look forward to a tournament we haven't been to in a year or two. We play some tournaments from last year - Seattle U, UNLV, Long Beach State, Oregon - again, and we mix up some tournaments we've been to in the past. It'll be a good schedule."
The Zags start out by returning to two tournaments after a few years' hiatus. They begin in Fort Collins, Colo., at Colorado State's Ptarmigan Ram Fall Classic Sept. 12-13, their season-opening contest two years ago as well. Next, the Zags will return to San Jose State's Juli Inkster Spartan Invitational after a four-and-a-half year break. That tournament will take place Sept. 19-20, exactly one week after the season opener.
Next, the Zags will experience some home cooking for the first time in four years as they'll host the Gonzaga Match Play Oct. 1-3 at Manito Golf and Country Club in Spokane. They'll face half of the six-team field in match play competition, playing 18 holes a day. The tournament will have a local vibe to it as five of the six participants - Gonzaga, Eastern Washington, Idaho, Portland State, and Seattle U - hail from the Northwest. West Coast Conference foe BYU rounds out the field at Manito. This is the first home tournament in four years for Gonzaga; the Zags hosted the Circling Raven Invitational in September 2011 and 2012.
After playing on its home course, Gonzaga heads west for Seattle U's Pat Lesser Harbottle Invitational Oct. 10-11. Last year, the Zags took third at the Tacoma Country and Golf Club-based tournament with Ciera Min finishing fifth individually. A two-week break then separates GU and the final tournament of the fall, the Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown, hosted by UNLV. The Zags will make their third consecutive appearance at the competition held Oct. 23-25 at Boulder Creek Golf Course in Henderson, Nev.
The spring season begins in late February with The Gold Rush in Seal Beach, Calif. Gonzaga has had success in the past with Long Beach State's tournament, winning it in 2014. Last year's tournament, however, was the first time GU had seen Old Ranch Country Club, its new venue.
Spring Break brings yet another trip for GU, and this year, the Zags will play two tournaments in St. George, Utah. The first of those contests is the BYU at Entrada Classic March 13-14, and after a practice round in between, they'll play in Southern Utah's Pizza Hut Thunderbird Invitational March 16-17. Both tournaments will be new for the Zags; BYU's will take place on Entrada Golf Course while SUU's is at Sunbrook Golf Course.
The Bulldogs wrap up the regular season with their second trips to a pair of tournaments. First, they will make the long flight over to Maui, Hawaii, for the Anuenue Spring Break Classic, held on the Bay Course at Kapalua Resort March 27-29. For the second straight year, GU will then finish the regular season in Napa, Calif., at the Silverado Showdown April 9-11. That competition takes place at Silverado Resort's North Course and is hosted by Oregon.
After the regular season ends, the Zags will look to replicate or improve on last year's stunning finish at the West Coast Conference Championships, which will run April 20-22. The WCCs are at Riverside Country Club in Provo, Utah, this season; this is the first time they've been held in the Beehive State. Last year, the Zags roared into second place on the final day of the conference meet, spurred on by Min's school-record 6-under-par 66. That round boosted Min to the WCC's individual title.
Should the Zags qualify, NCAA Regionals will take place May 8-10 at various sites across the country, and the NCAA Championships are May 19-24 at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill. Last year, Bianca Pagdanganan became the first Bulldog to reach the NCAA Championships after a Top 10 finish in Regionals.
Min and Pagdanganan join sophomore Jena Gao as returners from last year's squad, and they'll be bolstered by incoming freshmen Jessica Mangrobang and Nina Novilla. All five Zags will begin the fall semester and practice later this month.
