As the No. 10 Arizona women’s golf team headed into last weekend’s tournament in Tempe to play in the PING/ASU Invitational, the team seemed confident in its ability to play in its first tournament without its leader, senior Alison Walshe.

For the Wildcats, the weekend was successful given the circumstances, as they finished 38-over-par as a team through the three-day tournament, which concluded yesterday afternoon after the Wildcats shot a combined 14-over-par. The UA finished in ninth place, 48 strokes behind No. 3 USC, which took first place in the tournament with a 10-under-par.

“”Overall I thought we played OK,”” said UA head coach Shelly Haywood. “”I told them how proud of them I was.””

The Wildcats were led by senior Mary Jacobs who shot a 1-over-par to tie for eighth place individually. Freshman Alejandra Llaneza shot a 6-over-par for the team to tie for 24th and junior Amanda Wilson shot a 14-over-par to tie for 56th.

Sophomores Emily Mason (17 over, 64th) and Brittany Benvenuto (36 over, 87th) rounded out the Wildcats’ lineup.

“”We played together as a team,”” Haywood said. “”We had a couple of bad holes here and there but overall we played well.””

This was the first time the Wildcats had to play without Walshe, something that may have taken a toll on the team, forcing everyone else to step up.

“”We were obviously not as competitive,”” Haywood said. “”But who knows if it had any affect, things just happen.””

The Wildcats now must look ahead to the Pacific 10 Conference Championship coming up in three weeks.

“”We are definitely heading in the right direction,”” Haywood said. “”I think we can seriously compete.””