Dec. 1, 2010
MALIBU, Calif. - Grace Na, a top-10 ranked women's golf recruit in the class of 2011, will graduate from Alameda High School early and join Pepperdine in the spring semester, Pepperdine Coach Laurie Gibbs announced today.
Na will begin classes at Pepperdine in January and play in her first collegiate tournament at the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge at nearby Palos Verdes Country Club on Feb. 14-16.
Last month, Na won the 2010 CIF State Championship as an individual and led Alameda High to its most successful season ever with a fourth-place team finish at the state event. As an individual, she was also fifth at the 2009 state finals, seventh in 2008 and third in 2007.
Her junior golf results have been impressive, including playing in the U.S. Junior Girls Championship since 2005 and the last three U.S. Women's Amateur Championships. In 2008, she earned AJGA/Rolex Junior All-American honorable mention honors. She is currently #9 in the Golfweek/Sagarin junior rankings and has been as high as #4.
"We are very excited to add Grace to our roster in the spring," Gibbs said. "She is an excellent student and a very talented golfer that I believe will be successful at the college level immediately. Her friendly personality will add to an already fun group of players that enjoy being teammates and representing the Waves."
Pepperdine's women's golf program has done very well with top junior golfers that have begun their collegiate careers in January, then graduating in 3 1/2 years before moving on to the LPGA Tour. Those players include multiple All-American honorees Katherine Hull, Lindsey Wright and Carolina Llano. Last year, Danielle Kang enrolled in January and earned All-American honors as a freshman.
"I chose Pepperdine University because after my visit I fell in love with the atmosphere and the campus," Na said. "It was a very good balance in all three aspects of my life that are very important. The school size was small, meaning I will have a great opportunity to learn from my professors, the golf facilities were first class and beautiful, and my church is close to campus, which will allow me to stay good with my faith.
"Coach Gibbs had a vibe that assured me she will help me achieve success at the highest level of golf. She is a dedicated coach that is always willing to be there for her players and also knows when to be serious. She is a very nice lady and I am very excited to be a Wave."
Two weeks ago, Pepperdine announced the signing of two other highly ranked recruits to national letters-of-intent for the 2011-12 school year: Alina Ching (Honolulu, Hawaii/Punahou HS) and Somin Lee (Denver, Colo./Overland HS).
Pepperdine has made trips to the NCAA Championships in 10 of the last 12 years with eight top-10 finishes and four top-five results.
