In its second tournament of 2019, Arizona women’s golf overcame the cold conditions on the course in Las Vegas and took first place at the Rebel Beach Invitational on Tuesday, Feb. 19.
After 54 holes, the Wildcats came out victorious and claimed their second team win of the 2018-19 season, their first win being at the Pac-12 Preview back in November. Arizona finished in sole possession of first place at 14 over par, four strokes ahead of second place and host team UNLV (+18).
UA, along with a field of 15 other NCAA teams, were tasked with golfing in 45-degree weather with winds clocking in at close to 20 miles per hour at times. The cold proved to be a non-factor for the ‘Cats as they took care of business on UNLV’s home course, the Spanish Trail Country Club. The Wildcats led the field after day one of the tournament and never looked back, securing the first place win on day two.
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Senior golfer Bianca Pagdanganan was on fire throughout the tournament, especially during the first two rounds, tying in third place individually with a total score of 3 over par. The veteran leader used a first round score of 70 and a second round score of 71 to set the tone for the tournament and secure the top three finish.
Another veteran golfer that placed well for Arizona was senior Haley Moore. The senior used a pair of 73’s in the second and third round to tie for sixth place individually at four over par. Moore also notched 11 birdies at the tournament, enough for the third-most birdies from any golfer.
A key factor in the Wildcat’s success was their ability to score pars and birdies. Arizona led the field in overall pars and birdies with 174 pars made and 40 birdies, according to birdiefire.com. Arizona also posted the best average score on par 4’s with a 4.11 average team score and came in at second in par 3 scoring with a team average of 3.13.
Freshman and Taiwan native Ya Chun Chang finished the tournament in sole possession of eighth place at five over par. Chang, used a final round score of a 70 to climb up the leaderboard and stay within the top-10 individually. Chang also had the second most pars on the tournament with 39 over the course of three rounds.
Sophomore golfer Yu-Sang Hou placed in a tie for 13th place at eight over par. Hou had her best round during round two of the tournament, scoring a 72. Junior Sandra Nordaas rounded out the tournament for the Wildcats by tying in 20th place. Nordaas carded a tournament score of 10 over par and put all five UA golfers in the top 20 out of more than 85 golfers.
Elizabeth Prior of UNLV won the tournament at seven under par, with Colorado golfer Malak Bouraeda placing in second place.
Up next, the ‘Cats will look to defend their home course Sewailo Golf Club at the Wildcat Invitational from Mon. March 11 to Tues. March 12.
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