April 9, 2015

COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 4 South Carolina wraps up the regular season at the PING/ASU Invitational in Tempe, Ariz., this weekend. The Gamecocks are the defending champions and begin play on Friday at 11:45 a.m. ET, with the event, hosted by Arizona State University, continuing through Sunday at the par-72, 6,223-yard ASU Karsten Golf Course.

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Dates: Fri., April 10 – Sun., April 12
Location: Tempe, Ariz.
Course: ASU Karsten Golf Course • Par 72 • 6,223 yards
Format: 54-hole stroke play
The Lineup: Justine Dreher, Sarah Schmelzel, Katelyn Dambaugh, Ainhoa Olarra, Mary Fran Hillow
The Field: Alabama, Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Baylor, Duke, Oklahoma, San Diego State, South Carolina, Southern Cal, Stanford, Texas, UCLA, UNLV, Washington
Live Scoring: GolfStat

Tournament Notes

The No. 4 Gamecocks are set to tee off against the other four teams ranked in the top five of the GolfStat Relative Rankings – No. 1 Southern Cal, No. 2 Washington, No. 3 UCLA and No. 5 Duke. In the 15-team field, seven teams are ranked in the country’s top 10. The field also features 15 of the top 25 individuals.

Senior Justine Dreher returns to the top spot in the lineup with junior Sarah Schmelzel in the No. 2 spot. Sophomore Katelyn Dambaugh, freshman Ainhoa Olarra and junior Mary Fran Hillow follow. Sophomore Jia Xin Yang is set to play as an individual.

Dreher leads the Gamecocks with a season stroke average of 72.63, a score that tops the program’s single-season scoring average (minimum 18 rounds). In the program’s career scoring average (min. 55 rounds), Dreher checks in at No. 2 with a 74.33 average while Schmelzel is just behind her at 74.39.

This week’s trip out West marks South Carolina’s third appearance in the PING/ASU Invitational. The Gamecocks took 13th in 2013, before returning last spring to claim the title. On its way to the crown, South Carolina set a new program 54-hole low score, carding an 11-under 853 to claim a six-stroke win. Four Gamecock golfers – including Dambaugh, Dreher and Schmelzel – finished in the top 20 at last year’s event. Then-senior Samantha Swinehart tied for third place to lead South Carolina.

Two weeks ago, the Gamecocks competed at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic in Athens, Ga. In the opening round of stroke play, South Carolina continued its streak of regular-season top-five finishes, claiming second with a 20-over 308. Dreher led the way for the squad, finishing in second place with an even-par 72. After the opening round of stroke play, the tournament moved to match play. The Gamecocks fell to host Georgia, 3-2, before rebounding later in the day to defeat Arkansas, 3.5-1.5. In the final round, South Carolina took on Baylor, falling 3-2 to finish the match play portion in sixth place.

After a short turnaround, South Carolina begins postseason play with the SEC Championships April 17-19 in Birmingham, Ala.