May 7, 2003

The 15th-ranked South Carolina women’s golf team tees it up Thursday morning at 8:30 in the first round of the 2003 NCAA East Regional at Salem Glen Country Club in Clemmons, North Carolina. The Gamecocks are the seventh seed in the 21-team field and will participate in the three-round, 54-hole tournament to determine the eight teams who advance to the NCAA Championships to be held in Lafayette, Indiana, May 20-23rd.

South Carolina is making its fifth consecutive postseason visit and 10th NCAA Regional appearance. Head coach Kristi Coggins has earned a postseason berth in eight of the her nine years at the helm of the USC golf program. If USC were to advance to the NCAA Championships, it would mark the seventh visit for the Gamecocks.

Last year, South Carolina ventured to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to compete in the 2002 NCAA East Regional. The Gamecocks earned a sixth-place finish and advanced to the NCAA Championships. in Auburn, Washington, where they finished 23rd.

South Carolina is coming off a fourth-place outing at the 2003 SEC Championship in Lexington, Kentucky, back in April. Two-time SEC Individual Medalist Kristy McPherson captured third place while teammate Adrienne Gautreaux finished in a tie for eighth place.

After a Wednesday practice round, the Regional will begin on Thursday and continue each day through Saturday. First-round play starts on Thursday morning with South Carolina teeing off from 8:30 to 9:10 a.m. along with Tulane and North Carolina. Each team is comprised of five golfers with the best four scores counting each day towards the team’s total score.

The Gamecocks will enjoy veteran leadership as four of the five golfers participated in last year’s Regional and Championship. USC will be represented by seniors Kristy McPherson and Kacy Thompson, juniors Adrienne Gautreaux and Marci Robinson and sophomore Tiffany Catafygiotu. This is the first NCAA postseason tournament for Catafygiotu.

Results from each day’s competition will be posted on the South Carolina website (www.uscsports.com). Fans can also follow the NCAA Regional by watching the live hole-by-hole coverage on www.golfstat.com.