Feb. 12, 2007
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Aztecs Set To Defend Title In First Spring Outing
The San Diego State women's golf team kicks off its spring season this week by heading to the third annual Lady Braveheart Challenge in Beaumont, Calif., Feb. 12-13. The Aztecs are defending champions, having won last year's edition by eight strokes with a 36-hole score of 48-over 624.
The 2007 tournament, which is being hosted by UC Riverside, includes 17 schools, the largest field in the event's short history. SDSU's highest ranked opponent will be No. 52 UC Davis, while Sacramento and Cal Poly also represent tough competition for the Aztecs. The par-72, 6,191-yard Oak Valley Golf Club serves as the course for this year's tourney for the second consecutive season.
This is the third year in a row that SDSU has begun its spring schedule in the state of California.
Fab Five: Aztec Line-Up For This Week
Head coach Felicia Brown will take eight golfers with her to Riverside County, including a trio of individual competitors.
The team lineup includes senior Jamie Oliver (Los Alamitos, Calif.), junior Kim Carmody (Palatine, Ill.) and sophomores Alana Erlandson (Palm Desert, Calif.), Jackie Kazarian (Dana Point, Calif.) and Maki Kamimura (West Covina, Calif.). Three of the five played in at least three of the team tournaments this past fall, while transfer Carmody will compete as a member of the starting five for the first time in her Aztec career. Erlandson and Kamimura both played at the Lady Braveheart Challenge as true freshmen a year ago, while Oliver competed as an individual.
Individually, juniors Anna Booth (Coffs Harbour, Australia) and MacKenzie Swecker (Winnemucca, Nev.) and redshirt freshman Ashley Wood (Lake Tahoe, Calif.) will also make the trip.
Rewind: Lady Braveheart 2006
The San Diego State women's golf team started its 2006 spring season the same way it began the fall season, with a victory. SDSU finished first at UC Riverside's Lady Braveheart Challenge for its third team title of 2005-06. The Aztecs ended the 36-hole, two-day tournament with a final score of 624 (+48), including a second round 309, beating second place UC Davis (632) by eight strokes.
SDSU senior Heather MacRae was edged by Jessica Huss of Cal Poly by one stroke for the individual crown. MacRae finished the tournament at 10-over 154. Redshirt freshman Megan McLeod (Fallbrook, Calif.) wasn't far behind MacRae, tying for third place with a final score of 11-over 155. Sophomore Anna Booth, who participated in the tournament as an individual, ended in a three-way tie for sixth, carding a 12-over 156.
Along with MacRae and McLeod, freshmen Maki Kamimura, Alana Erlandson and Heather Wilson (Chula Vista, Calif.) all finished in the top 15. Kamimura tied for 10th with a final score of 16-over 160. Erlandson and Wilson were part of a three-way tie for 14th, shooting an 18-over 162.
Six Aztecs competed individually at the Lady Braveheart Challenge, including Booth, junior Jamie Oliver and sophomore MacKenzie Swecker. Oliver and Swecker both tied for 23rd overall.
Looking Back At The Fall Season
The San Diego State women's golf squad played in four team tournaments this past fall, logging top-13 finishes in every event. The Aztecs top performance came at their lone home tournament of the season, the Taylor Made Aztec Fall Classic, where the team took ninth place in the 19-team field.
Individually, the Aztecs swept the top two spots at the La Quinta Inn & Suites Shootout in Flagstaff, Ariz., Sept. 18-19. Anna Booth claimed medalist honors with a 2-over 148, just one stroke better than teammate Maki Kamimura, who carded a 3-over 149.
Four SDSU players ended their fall campaign with a sub-78.00 stroke average, including Alana Erlandson, who posted a team-best 76.88 average in eight rounds.
Coming Attractions
SDSU stays in California for one more tournament, as the Aztecs head to Fresno, Calif., for the Fresno State Invitational at the Copper River Country Club. San Diego State came in 15th place in the 2006 edition.
The Aztecs play at the UNLV Spring Invitational in mid-March, followed by the Lady Otter Invitational in Seaside, Calif. SDSU heads to Oregon, before traveling to St. George, Utah, for two straight tournaments, the BYU Dixie Classic and the Mountain West Conference championships.
Head Coach Felicia Brown
Head coach Felicia Brown is in her fifth season at the helm of the SDSU golf program after serving as an assistant in 2001-02. A native San Diegan, Brown prepped locally at San Marcos High School before playing collegiately at Arizona.
She is assisted by Doug Barba for the fourth year in a row.