Oct. 27, 2016

COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 19 South Carolina women’s golf concludes its fall slate at the 2016 Landfall Tradition this weekend in Wilmington, N.C. The 54-hole event, which takes place Oct. 28-30, will be contested at the Pete Dye Course and feature an 18-team field.

COACH Kalen Anderson ON THE EVENT

BREAKING DOWN THE FIELD

This week’s field will include eight teams currently ranked in Golfstat’s Top-25 Poll, including the top two schools in the country – No. 1 Alabama and No. 2 Furman. The Crimson Tide and No. 19 Gamecocks mark the only SEC schools at the event, while No. 13 Wake Forest enters this week with three Landfall Tradition Championships (2007, 2008, 2014). Purdue, which is currently ranked No. 12, is a two-time champion of the event, winning the tournament in 2005 and 2011.

HISTORY AT THE LANDFALL TRADITION

This weekend marks the sixth appearance at the Landfall Tradition for the Gamecocks, who have competed at the event every year since 2010. Carolina boasts three top-five finishes at the tournament, including a third-place showing in 2014. Katelyn Dambaugh earned her first collegiate top-five finish as a freshman at the event in 2013, and the Goose Creek, S.C., native grabbed runner-up honors at the tournament last season.

LAST TIME OUT

South Carolina earned its first top-five finish of the season at the Ruth’s Chris Tar Heel Invitational earlier this month, placing in a tie for fifth with a 54-hole mark of 873 (+9). Two Gamecocks finished in the top 15, including senior Katelyn Dambaugh, who posted a final-round 68 to move up the leaderboard and grab fifth-place honors (212, -4).

Ainhoa Olarra recorded a 54-hole score of 217 (+1), as the junior boasted her top finish (T15) of the season. Freshman Ana Pelaez placed in a tie for 31st (222, +6) in her collegiate debut for the Gamecocks, while sophomores Marion Veysseyre and Isidora Nilsson both tied for 45th at 8-over 224. Carolina, which has finished in the top 10 in each of the last three seasons at the Tar Heel Invitational, led the field with 186 pars.

CHIP SHOTS

• South Carolina enters its 10 season under head coach Kalen Anderson, who has guided the program to eight tournament wins and seven NCAA Championship appearances
• Carolina is one of five schools to reach the NCAA Championship in each of the last seven years, and this spring marked its 16th overall appearance
• South Carolina currently ranks first in Division I in par-3 scoring (2.98); the Gamecocks are also in the top 10 in par-5 scoring (6th, 4.80)
• Senior Senior Katelyn Dambaugh, who has shot under par in seven of nine rounds this season, ranks seventh in Division I in stroke average (69.56)
• Ainhoa Olarra recently moved into the top 10 on South Carolina’s career scoring average list, as the junior currently sits in seventh with a mark of 74.82
• Sophomore Isidora Nilsson’s 72 (E) on day two of the Cougar Classic was her second career round of par or better
• Freshmen Anita Uwadia and Ana Pelaez both boasted a round of par or better in their first collegiate tournaments; Uwadia shot under par all three days at the ANNIKA Intercollegiate, while Pelaez posted a second-round 72 (E) on day two of the Tar Heel Invitational

UP NEXT FOR THE GAMECOCKS

South Carolina is back in action in February for the start of its spring season. The Gamecocks will announce their full spring slate later this fall.