Event: NCAA Regionals
Where: Washington National Golf Club – Auburn, Wash.
When: Today through Saturday, all day
Who to watch: Sophomore Demi Runas has already accomplished so much in her short time as an Aggie.
The Torrance, Calif. native was named the 2010-11 Big West Conference Women’s Golfer of the Year for her performance on the conference-winning squad.
Runas leads UC Davis in scoring with a 74.1 average and has enjoyed a season with six top-10 finishes, including third at the Big West Championships, fourth at the Peg Barnard Invitational at Stanford an sixth at the Fresno State Lexus Classic.
Did you know? The two seniors on the roster – Chelsea Steltzmiller and Alice Kim – will be participating in their fourth NCAA Regionals this week.
Preview: To coach Anne Walker, a new season begins now.
The UC Davis women’s golf team begins play at the NCAA Regionals today. This is the third time in four years at the Division I level the Aggies have reached the NCAA Regionals.
According to Walker, the 2010-11 Big West Coach of the Year, the Aggies’ can’t rely on past successes to carry them through the event.
“NCAA Regionals are a whole different deal,” Walker said. “What we’ve done earlier doesn’t mean anything. It’s almost like rolling the dice at this event.”
One of the biggest reasons the Regionals are a different animal, according to Walker, is the larger draw. The Aggies will go up against 24 different squads this weekend, including seven of the top-20 teams in the nation. Currently, UC Davis is ranked 26th in the country and is the eight seed at this weekend’s event.
That said, Walker said one of the things UC Davis has going in its favor, is confidence. The Aggies cruised to its second-straight Big West team title this year, setting the conference scoring record for the league championships.
Walker said UC Davis has an advantage with four of the squad’s starting five, having participated at the NCAA Regionals before.
“I’m feeling good about our overall team leadership,” Walker said. “If we can go to Regionals and do well one shot at a time, we’ll end up where we want to be.”
– Jason Alpert
