May 3, 2011
Pepperdine Women's Golf Notes 
MALIBU, Calif. -- With its 10th consecutive West Coast Conference championship in the books, the Pepperdine women's golf team moves on to postseason play at the NCAA West Regional. The Waves, who are making their 13th consecutive regional appearance, are the #6 seed and they'll be looking to finish in the top eight in order to advance to the NCAA Championships for the 11th time in the program's history.
COURSE/SCHEDULE -- The NCAA West Regional will be held at the par-72, 6,266-yard Washington National Golf Club in Auburn, Wash. Eighteen holes will be played each day between Thursday and Saturday (May 5-7). For the first two days, the Waves are paired with Georgia and Tennessee. The schools will start off the 10th hole at 9:06 a.m. on Thursday and off the first hole at 1:26 p.m. on Friday.
FIELD -- There are 24 teams at the tournament. In order of seeding, they are: USC, Virginia, Arizona, Georgia, Tennessee, Pepperdine, Iowa State, UC Davis, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Washington (the host school), Tulsa, Denver, San Diego State, BYU, New Mexico, UTSA, Portland, New Mexico State, San Jose State, Oral Roberts and UTEP.
RESULTS -- Live scoring will be provided at www.golfstat.com.
PEPPERDINE LINEUP -- The lineup for the NCAA West Regional consists of senior Taylore Karle (Scottsdale, Ariz./Laurel Springs Academy), junior Kaitlin Drolson (Rancho Santa Fe, Calif./Torrey Pines HS), and freshmen Liv Cheng (Auckland, New Zealand/Macleans College), Danielle Gillaspy (Santa Maria, Calif./St. Joseph's HS) and Grace Na (Alameda, Calif./Alameda HS). Sophomore Danielle Kang (Thousand Oaks, Calif./Westlake HS) became academically ineligible at the conclusion of the spring semester and will not compete again this season.
RANKINGS -- Pepperdine is currently #16 in the Golfweek/Sagarin index, #18 in the Golf World/NGCA poll and #20 by Golfstat. Individually, Grace Na is #36 by Golfstat and #42 by Golfweek/Sagarin.
STATISTICS -- Season scoring averages for the players taking part in the tournament are as follows: Na 73.72 (six tournaments), Karle 74.93 (nine), Drolson 75.15 (nine), Cheng 75.96 (nine) and Gillaspy 78.28 (six).
NCAA EXPERIENCE -- Three freshmen are making their NCAA postseason debuts for Pepperdine. Kaitlin Drolson (65th in 2009, T-39th in 2010) and Taylore Karle (T-47th in 2008, T-35th in 2009, T-95th in 2010) have both made multiple regional appearances.
NCAA HISTORY -- Pepperdine has advanced to the NCAA Championships 10 times out of 12 previous NCAA Regional trips. The Waves, who have placed in the top 10 at nationals eight times, including a program-best second-place result in 2003, will be aiming for their third consecutive trip to the NCAA Championships. At the 2002 NCAA Championships, which were held at Washington National Golf Club, Pepperdine tied for ninth place. The Waves' best regional finish came in 2002, when they tied for first place with UCLA at the West Regional at Stanford.
2011 WCC CHAMPIONS -- Pepperdine overwhelmed the rest of the field at the WCC Championships, held April 18-19 at San Juan Oaks Golf Club in Hollister, Calif., as the Waves won their 10th straight title by a 36-stroke margin. Pepperdine has won 13 of the 15 league titles ever contested. The Waves' average margin of victory over the last 10 years has been 27.5 strokes. Individually, the Waves finished 1-2-3 in the standings with Grace Na (1-over 217) outdueling Danielle Kang (218) by one stroke for medalist honors. It's also the 10th straight time a Wave claimed the individual title. Kaitlin Drolson (220) was third, Taylore Karle (226) was sixth and Liv Cheng (228) tied for eighth.
2010-11 HONORS -- Grace Na was named both the WCC's Player of the Year and the Freshman of the Year ... She and four others made the All-WCC first team (the third straight year and the sixth time overall the Waves put all five players in the lineup on the first team) ... Taylore Karle made the All-WCC first team for the fourth time, Kaitlin Drolson earned her third nod, Danielle Kang picked up her second and Liv Cheng was rewarded with her first ... Kang was named the WCC Player of the Month for September, February and March (her second, third and fourth times winning the award).
2010-11 REGULAR-SEASON HIGHLIGHTS -- Pepperdine maintained or improved its team standing at five consecutive events earlier this season, culminating with a first-place result at the UNLV Spring Invitational on March 7-9 ... The Waves shot 20-under to win at UNLV, the second-best team score in team history. The top two scores in Pepperdine history came at the Boulder Creek Golf Course, as the Waves shot an NCAA-record 41-under to win the 2008 Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown there ... The Waves' had a 10-under 278 in the second round at UNLV, the fourth-best round in program history ... Pepperdine also took third at the Bruin Wave Invitational and tied for fourth at both the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational and Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge.
NA -- Freshman Grace Na has recorded a tremendous double this academic year, winning the CIF state championship in the fall (then graduating early from Alameda High School in order to enroll at Pepperdine in January) and taking home medalist honors at the 2011 WCC Championships. The WCC Player and Freshman of the Year has given the Waves' lineup a big boost, as she's placed in the top 20 at five of her six tournaments thus far.
KARLE -- Senior Taylore Karle ranks seventh on Pepperdine's all-time scoring list with an average of 74.52 strokes. She has two career wins, 15 top 10s and 22 top 20s. She earned All-American second team honors as a freshman and has won two career tournaments. Karle is a four-time All-WCC first team selection.
DROLSON -- Junior Kaitlin Drolson has a career stroke average of 75.49, which ranks ninth all-time at Pepperdine. Her best finishes this season have been third place at the WCC Championships and a tie for seventh place at the UNLV Spring Invitational. She is a three-time All-WCC first team selection.
CHENG -- Freshman Liv Cheng is one of three Pepperdine players, and the only newcomer, to compete at all nine tournaments this season. Her best finishes have been a tie for eighth at the WCC Championships, a tie for 10th at the Bruin Wave Invitational and a tie for 12th at the UNLV Spring Invitational.
GILLASPY -- Freshman Danielle Gillaspy has appeared at six of nine tournaments this season (two times in the lineup and four times playing as an individual). Her best finish has been a tie for 27th place at the UNLV Spring Invitational.
GIBBS -- Recognized by her peers as one of the top collegiate women's golf coaches in the country, Laurie Gibbs is in her 18th season as head coach of the Pepperdine women's golf team. Under Gibbs, the Waves have appeared in the NCAA Championships 10 times, with eight top 10 finishes and four top five showings, including a program-best second-place result in 2003. Her players have earned All-American honors 20 times. Gibbs has led Pepperdine to West Coast Conference championships in 13 of the last 14 years, including a current streak of 10 titles that began in 2002. Gibbs has been honored 10 times as the WCC's Coach of the Year, was tabbed the West Region Coach of the Year on two occasions and was selected the 2004-05 National Coach of the Year by Golfweek magazine.
2009-10 RECAP -- Another successful season went into the books as the Waves finished with a #9 ranking by Golfweek/Sagarin, tied for 14th place at the NCAA Championships and won their ninth straight WCC title. Pepperdine won three tournaments in all and had medalists at three events.
PEPPERDINE GOLF HISTORY -- The last decade-plus has established Pepperdine as one of the nation's top golf programs. The Waves have appeared in the NCAA Championships 10 times in 12 years, with eight top 10 finishes and four top five showings, including a program-best second-place result in 2003. The Waves have won West Coast Conference championships in 13 of the last 14 years, including a current streak of 10 titles that began in 2002. LPGA Tour players have included Katherine Hull, Lindsey Wright, Tamie Durdin, Misun Cho and Carolina Llano.
ABOUT PEPPERDINE -- Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won a total of nine NCAA championships in five different men's sports -- one of just 14 schools to have accomplished this feat. Of the 14, Pepperdine is the only non-BCS school and has by far the smallest enrollment. The majority of Pepperdine's teams are ranked nationally year after year and compete for conference and national titles.
