Gamecocks Set to Close Out Regular Season at PING ASU Invitational

April 3, 2014

Notes

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The South Carolina women’s golf team opens play in its final regular season tournament of the year on Friday at the PING ASU Invitational host by Arizona State University in Tempe, Ariz. The 54-hole event runs through Sunday at the ASU Karsten Golf Course, which features a par-72, 6,223 yard layout.

South Carolina recorded its sixth consecutive top-5 finish of the season last weekend, taking second place at the Bryan National Collegiate. Justine Dreher and Samantha Swinehart both finished in the top-10 on the individual leaderboard in seventh place and a tie for ninth, respectively. The Gamecocks’ performance moved them up one spot in the Golfstat rankings to No. 7 and two spots in the Golf World/WGCA Division I College Women’s Coaches Poll to No. 10.

The same six golfers who participated in the Bryan National Collegiate will compete this weekend with Dreher and Swinehart holding the top two spots. Sarah Schmelzel, Katelyn Dambaugh and Suzie Lee will also have a place in the lineup while Mary Fran Hillow will compete as an individual. As Swinehart and Lee are both seniors, this marks their last regular season tournament.

The Gamecocks will be making their second appearance in the PING ASU Invitational. Last year, South Carolina finished in 13th place with a score of 886 (+22). Sarah Schmelzel finished highest on the individual leaderboard in a tie for 27th place after carding a 2-over 218.

South Carolina will be facing another field packed with ranked opponents as 12 of the 15 teams currently hold a spot in the Golfstat top-50. Three top-5 teams highlight the field with No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Duke and No. 5 Oklahoma all making the trip to Tempe, Ariz. In addition to No. 7 South Carolina, three more teams are ranked in the top-10, as No. 6 Arizona State, No. 8 Stanford and No. 9 Arizona will all participate in the tournament. Only one other SEC will join the Gamecocks in No. 12 Vanderbilt. No. 11 Washington, No. 30 Oregon, No. 34 California, No. 39 UC Davis, Texas, Oregon State and Washington State round out the field.

First round play begins Friday at 8:00 a.m. Live scoring will be available here >