May 10, 2014
CLE ELUM, Wash. - The San Diego State women's golf team saw its 2013-14 season come to a conclusion Saturday as it tied for 21st place with Portland State following the final round of the NCAA West Regional at Tumble Creek Club at Suncadia Resort. Battling cool and blustery conditions for the second day in a row, the Aztecs fired a combined 32-over 320 on the final day of competition for a 54-hole total of 91-over 955 on the par-72, 6,252-yard course layout.
Emma Henrikson (Malmö, Sweden) was SDSU's highest finisher for the fifth tournament in a row despite carding an uncharacteristic 83 on Saturday. The Aztec sophomore was plagued by seven bogeys and two double-bogeys, sliding 23 places into a tie for 68th with a collective 20-over 236.
Conversely, Paige Spiranac (Scottsdale, Ariz.) was lone SDSU player to make a significant gain on the individual leaderboard, climbing 12 spots into a tie for 75th at 21-over 237 after recording a final-round 78. The Aztec junior drained a pair of birdies at Nos. 8 and 12 to help ease the sting of two double-bogeys and four bogeys before closing with five straight pars.
Meanwhile, Sirene Blair (South Jordan, Utah) wrapped her rookie campaign by firing an 81 over the final 18 holes. The SDSU freshman was even just before the turn as a birdie on the par-4, 320-yard No. 3 offset a bogey at No. 1. However, Blair was unable to recover from a triple-bogey on No. 9, suffering four bogeys and a double-bogey down the stretch to drop six places into a tie with Spiranac in the 75th position.
The Aztecs' other freshman, Maria Fernanda Villegas (Ensenada, Mexico), saved her best for last, posting a final-round 79, which put her in a tie for 113th at 32-over 248. Villegas got off to a rough start with seven bogeys, including five straight to begin the day, but regrouped nicely on the back nine, notching five pars to go with birdie on the 13th, her second of the round following a successful make on No. 8.
Rounding out the SDSU delegation was junior Kristina Lynn (Carlsbad, Calif.), who shot an 82 on Saturday to finish one stroke in back of Villegas at 249. Lynn was just 3-over on the front nine, but a trio of double-bogeys after the turn sandbagged her round.
In all, individual scores rose for the second day in a row, with only four golfers finishing at or below par during the final round. The 126-player field averaged 79.56 strokes on Saturday, compared to a 78.41 scoring average on Friday and a 77.10 clip on Thursday.
USC (+12) claimed the West Regional title over host Washington (+13) by one shot as the top eight schools advance to the NCAA Championships, May 20-23, in Tulsa, Okla. Joining the Women of Troy and the Huskies will be Arizona State, Oklahoma, Michigan State, Iowa State, Texas A&M and Northwestern, along with individuals Clariss Guce of Cal State Northridge and Denver's Tonje Daffinrud.
ASU's Noemi Jimenez (-3) captured medalist honors after edging USC's Annie Park and SooBin Kim of Washington, both of whom finished two shots behind at 1-under.
Team Scores (Top 10 of 24 schools + SDSU)(Top eight advance to NCAA Championships)1. USC 284-294-298--876 (+12)2. Washington 288-292-297--877 (+13)3. Arizona State 289-289-311--889 (+25)4. Oklahoma 291-295-309--895 (+31)5. Michigan State 291-311-301--903 (+39)T6. Iowa State 300-305-304--909 (+45)T6. Texas A&M 290-313-306--909 (+45)8. Northwestern 302-296-316--914 (+50)T9. Wake Forest 304-303-314--921 (+57)T9. Wisconsin 301-305-315--921 (+57)---T21. San Diego State 317-318-320--955 (+91)
Individual Scores (Top 10 of 126 players + SDSU)1. Noemi Jimenez, Arizona State 67-74-72--213 (-3)T2. Annie Park, USC 71-71-73--215 (-1)T2. SooBin Kim, Washington 70-70-75--215 (-1)T4. Marijosse Navarro, Texas A&M 67-74-75--216 (E)T4. Kyung Kim, USC 66-74-76--216 (E)6. Charlotte Thomas, Washington 74-72-71--217 (+1)7. Jennifer Yang, Washington 70-75-73--218 (+2)T8. Clariss Guce, Cal State Northridge* 68-77-76--221 (+5)T8. Anne Tanguay, Oklahoma 75-73-73--221 (+5)10. Karen Chung, USC 77-72-73--222 (+6)---T68. Emma Henrikson, SDSU 76-77-83--236 (+20)T75. Sirene Blair, SDSU 77-79-81--237 (+21)T75. Paige Spiranac, SDSU 80-79-78--237 (+21)T113. Maria Fernanda Villegas, SDSU 85-84-79--248 (+32)115. Kristina Lynn, SDSU 84-83-82--249 (+33)
* - competed as an individual