SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego State women's golf team is set to compete in the two-day Juli Inkster at Meadow Club Invitational in Fairfax, Calif. The par-72, 6,157-yard course will have 36 holes played on Monday and 18 in the final round on Tuesday.
The Aztecs, who are 34th in the latest Golfstat rankings (released March 2), are one of four teams in the field currently ranked in the top 40, along with No. 11 Stanford, No. 36 UC Davis and No. 37 San José State. Brigham Young, California, Cal Poly, Fresno State, Pepperdine, Sacramento State, San Francisco, Washington and Washington State are also in the event.
SDSU will be teeing off from the first hole with Brigham Young and Pepperdine, beginning at 7:50 a.m. PT Monday. The second round, meanwhile, is tentatively set for a 12:20 p.m. PT start with the final round on Tuesday slated for 7:30 a.m. PT.
San Diego State is coming off an 11th-place finish at the Bruin Wave Invitational last week (March 1-3) at the Saticoy Club in Somis, Calif. The Aztecs were one of only two teams to post better rounds all three days and collectively shot a 95-over-par 959 in tough conditions. Also in the field at the Bruin Wave Invitational and this week at the Juli Inkster at Meadow Club Invitational are Pepperdine (fourth place), Washington (tied for seventh) and Cal Poly (14th).
Aztec head coach Leslie Spalding is going with the starting lineup of Sara Kjellker, Anna Lina Otten, Andrea Gomez, April Ranches and Bernice Olivarez Ilas for this week.
Kjellker has been SDSU's top golfer at each of the first two tournaments so far this year, tying for second at the Lamkin Invitational at 1-under 215 and taking 16th last week at the Bruin Invitational at 17-over 233. Kjellker leads San Diego State with a 74.67 stroke average and is ranked 21st in the latest Sagarin individual ratings (as of March 4).
Otten is playing in the starting lineup for a second straight tournament, tying for 57th last week at 33-over 249 after tying for 22nd while competing as an individual at the Lamkin at 14-over 230. The freshman ranks fourth on the team in scoring at 79.83.
A freshman like Otten, Gomez is in the starting five for the third straight tournament. Gomez tied for 18th at +13 at the Lamkin Invite and tied for 33rd at +24 last week at the Bruin Wave Invitational. Her 78.17 stroke average is tied with Ilas for second on the team.
Ranches is coming off an 80th-place showing at the Bruin Wave (+50) after tying for 41st at the Lamkin (+25).
Ilas had her best finish last week in Somis, tying for 19th at 21-over 237. In the opening tournament at the Lamkin Invitational, she tied for 27th at +16. As previously mentioned, Ilas is tied for the second-lowest scoring average on the team.
The Aztecs last played in this tournament in 2017 and came away with a four-stroke victory over Brigham Young at 6-over 870. SDSU had four of the top-15 finishers in the 2017 tournament, including a T4 finish by Sirene Blair at 1-under 215.
The tournament was renamed the Juli Inkster at Meadow Club Invitational in 2019. This is the sixth year of the tournament, which has also been called Meadow Club Women's Collegiate and Bay Area Collegiate. Washington is the only repeat winner, taking the inaugural title in 2015 and winning again in 2018. Other winners include California (2016), Rutgers (2019) and Oregon State (2020).
Following the Juli Inkster at Meadow Club Invitational, San Diego State will compete at The Bruzzy in Dallas, Texas on March 29-30.
W. Golf Set for Juli Inkster at Meadow Club Invite
