WoMen's Golf Heads West for NCAA Regional

WoMen's Golf Heads West for NCAA Regional

STANFORD, Calif. – The Miami Hurricanes women’s golf team, making its first NCAA postseason appearance in eight years, travels to the West Coast for the 2013 NCAA West Regional, hosted by Stanford University.

The 54-hole regional tournament will be played Thursday-Saturday at the par-72, 6,154-yard Stanford Golf Course. The low eight teams and the low two individuals not on an advancing team will move on to the 32nd annual NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championship, which will be held May 21-24 at the University of Georgia Golf Course in Athens, Ga.

Miami, one of 24 teams selected to the NCAA West Regional, is making its 20th NCAA postseason appearance and 32nd postseason trip in program history. In their last NCAA appearance, the Hurricanes finished 13th at the 2005 NCAA East Regional.

Miami, ranked No. 54 in the latest Golfstat standings, is one of two ACC schools playing out west, joining in-state rival Florida State. The NCAA West Regional field also includes nine automatic qualifiers that won their respective conference championships – USC (Pac 12), Pepperdine (West Coast), Denver (WAC), UNLV (Mountain West), Harvard (Ivy League), Kent State (MAC), Northern Arizona (Big Sky), North Dakota State (Summit League) and Long Island (Northeast).

“There’s going to be a lot of really good teams out there this time around,” third-year head coach Patti Rizzo said. “We’re in the big time now, so we have to play big-time golf.”

Led by All-ACC golfer Leticia Ras-Anderica, Miami’s lineup will feature two freshmen, two sophomores and one junior. Ras-Anderica, the Canes’ first All-ACC performer since 2011, has posted a team-best 74.34 stroke average through 11 tournaments. She has six top-25 finishes, while also finishing four times in the top 15 and three times in the top 10.

Ras-Anderica and sophomore Rika Park competed at the 2012 NCAA Central Regional as individuals. Park ranks second on the team with a 75.22 stroke average, while tying for the team lead with three top-10 finishes.

“Leticia [Ras-Anderica] and Rika’s [Park] experience will certainly be an advantage for them this weekend,” Rizzo said. “They know what’s in store in terms of competition so I think that experience will translate well for them.”

Joining Ras-Anderica and Park are junior Carina Cuculiza and freshmen Christina Ocampo and Lauren Riehle.

The Hurricanes will begin their NCAA Championship quest Thursday. Live scoring for each round of the 2013 NCAA West Regional will be available at www.golfstat.com.

For the latest information, follow the Miami Hurricanes women’s golf team on Twitter, @HurricanesGolf.

NCAA WEST REGIONAL INFORMATION
Dates: Thu., May 9-Sat., May 11
Location: Stanford, Calif. (Stanford Golf Course)
Host: Stanford
Par / Yardage: 72 / 6,154 yards
Format: 18-18-18
Teams (24): USC, Arizona, Vanderbilt, Purdue, Stanford, Georgia, Baylor, Texas A&M, Pepperdine, LSU, Denver, South Carolina, Ohio State, Oregon, UNLV, Cal, Florida State, Miami, San Jose State, Harvard, Kent State, Northern Arizona, North Dakota State, Long Island
Individuals: Laura Wearn, Furman; Jennifer Coleman, Colorado; Sammi Stevens, New Mexico; A Ram Choi, Portland State; Luciane Lee, UC Irvine; Michelle Park, UC Irvine
Live Scoring: www.golfstat.com
Twitter: @HurricanesGolf / #NCAAWGOLF