Monday, September 16
Pullman, Wash.
Pepperdine University
at
WSU Cougar Cup
Sifan He
Photo by: Owen Main
Women's Golf Off to Second Tournament
9/13/2019 11:01:00 AM | Women's Golf
MALIBU, California — After a terrific start to the season, the #25 Pepperdine women's golf team wastes no time heading to its second tournament and next week's Cougar Cup hosted by Washington State.
The Waves placed second at the Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Invitational this week, while Momoka Kobori earned medalist honors.
EVENT INFO — The WSU Cougar Cup will be held at the Palouse Ridge Golf Club in Pullman, Washington. There will be two rounds played on Monday followed by a single round on Tuesday (Sept. 16-17). Live scoring will be provided via Golfstat.
FIELD — The 15-team field includes Pepperdine, host Washington State, BYU, California, Colorado, Colorado State, Denver, Gonzaga, Idaho, New Mexico, Oregon, Oregon State, Seattle, San Francisco and Washington.
PEPPERDINE LINEUP — For the second straight event, the Waves' lineup consists of senior Momoka Kobori (Rangiora, New Zealand), freshman Alexa Melton (Covina, Calif./South Hills HS), junior Megan Dennis (Bedfordshire, United Kingdom/Florida Tech), sophomore Sifan He (Shanghai, China) and freshman Reese Guzman (Kahului, Hawai'i/Maui HS). Sophomore Kathrine Chan (Richmond, B.C., Canada) will compete as an individual.
EVENT HISTORY — This is the first time that the Waves have played in the WSU Cougar Cup. Palouse Ridge will be one of the NCAA Regional sites this season. Washington State head coach Kelli Kamimura is a former Pepperdine assistant.
PRESEASON HYPE — The Waves came in at #25 on Golfweek's preseason rankings ... Golfweek also listed freshman Alexa Melton as a preseason All-American second team selection, and as one of the top 10 freshmen in the country.
ROSTER — The Waves, who won their 18th West Coast Conference title last season, will look quite a bit different this year. Three seniors off a six-person roster have graduated, and three talented newcomers have taken their place. Senior Momoka Kobori is the only Wave that has been with the program for multiple seasons. A pair of sophomores, Kathrine Chan and Sifan He, are the other returners. The Waves added junior transfer Megan Dennis, who won the NCAA Division II championship with Florida Tech in 2019 (but had to find a new home after the department dropped women's golf). Pepperdine also signed a pair of freshmen in Alexa Melton (a 2018 AJGA All-American second team selection) and Reese Guzman (who won four AJGA titles).
Kobori, a two-time All-WCC first team pick, ranks 11th all-time on Pepperdine's career scoring list (74.60) with 87 career rounds.
DICK McGUIRE INVITATIONAL — Momoka Kobori won her first college title in the season's first event, shooting a 9-under 207 to win by two shots. She began the final round tied for 10th place and six shots back but posted an 8-under 64 (eight birdies, zero bogeys), tying the third-best single round in program history. Her 54-hole score of 9-under puts her a tie for sixth on the Waves' all-time list.
GIBBS — Under the direction of Laurie Gibbs, who is now in her 27th season as head coach, Pepperdine has earned a place as one of the nation's top golf programs. Gibbs has been honored 13 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. Gibbs was inducted into the WGCA Coaches Hall of Fame in December 2015. The Waves have won 51 tournaments in her career.
GOLF HISTORY — The Waves have appeared in the NCAA Championships 12 times in the last 21 years, and have recorded 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 18 of the last 23 years, including a streak of 14 titles that ran from 2002 to 2015. Thirteen different players have earned All-American honors a total of 29 times, including Hira Naveed last season. LPGA Tour players have included Katherine (Hull) Kirk, Lindsey Wright, Tamie Durdin, Nadina (Taylor) Light, Misun Cho, Carolina Llano, Danielle Kang, Taylore Karle and Grace Na. Hull was the 2003 National Player of the Year and was inducted into the WGCA Hall of Fame in 2012. Kang won back-to-back U.S. Amateur Championships in 2010 and 2011.
ONLINE — Follow the Pepperdine women's golf team on Twitter (@WavesGolf), Facebook (/WavesGolf) and Instagram (pepperdinewomensgolf).
ABOUT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY — Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men's sports — one of just 18 schools to have accomplished this feat — and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a "major" conference. The Waves have won a total of 25 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, three times (most recently in 2011-12). Located in scenic Malibu, California, the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation's most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #50 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.
The Waves placed second at the Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Invitational this week, while Momoka Kobori earned medalist honors.
EVENT INFO — The WSU Cougar Cup will be held at the Palouse Ridge Golf Club in Pullman, Washington. There will be two rounds played on Monday followed by a single round on Tuesday (Sept. 16-17). Live scoring will be provided via Golfstat.
FIELD — The 15-team field includes Pepperdine, host Washington State, BYU, California, Colorado, Colorado State, Denver, Gonzaga, Idaho, New Mexico, Oregon, Oregon State, Seattle, San Francisco and Washington.
PEPPERDINE LINEUP — For the second straight event, the Waves' lineup consists of senior Momoka Kobori (Rangiora, New Zealand), freshman Alexa Melton (Covina, Calif./South Hills HS), junior Megan Dennis (Bedfordshire, United Kingdom/Florida Tech), sophomore Sifan He (Shanghai, China) and freshman Reese Guzman (Kahului, Hawai'i/Maui HS). Sophomore Kathrine Chan (Richmond, B.C., Canada) will compete as an individual.
EVENT HISTORY — This is the first time that the Waves have played in the WSU Cougar Cup. Palouse Ridge will be one of the NCAA Regional sites this season. Washington State head coach Kelli Kamimura is a former Pepperdine assistant.
PRESEASON HYPE — The Waves came in at #25 on Golfweek's preseason rankings ... Golfweek also listed freshman Alexa Melton as a preseason All-American second team selection, and as one of the top 10 freshmen in the country.
ROSTER — The Waves, who won their 18th West Coast Conference title last season, will look quite a bit different this year. Three seniors off a six-person roster have graduated, and three talented newcomers have taken their place. Senior Momoka Kobori is the only Wave that has been with the program for multiple seasons. A pair of sophomores, Kathrine Chan and Sifan He, are the other returners. The Waves added junior transfer Megan Dennis, who won the NCAA Division II championship with Florida Tech in 2019 (but had to find a new home after the department dropped women's golf). Pepperdine also signed a pair of freshmen in Alexa Melton (a 2018 AJGA All-American second team selection) and Reese Guzman (who won four AJGA titles).
Kobori, a two-time All-WCC first team pick, ranks 11th all-time on Pepperdine's career scoring list (74.60) with 87 career rounds.
DICK McGUIRE INVITATIONAL — Momoka Kobori won her first college title in the season's first event, shooting a 9-under 207 to win by two shots. She began the final round tied for 10th place and six shots back but posted an 8-under 64 (eight birdies, zero bogeys), tying the third-best single round in program history. Her 54-hole score of 9-under puts her a tie for sixth on the Waves' all-time list.
GIBBS — Under the direction of Laurie Gibbs, who is now in her 27th season as head coach, Pepperdine has earned a place as one of the nation's top golf programs. Gibbs has been honored 13 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. Gibbs was inducted into the WGCA Coaches Hall of Fame in December 2015. The Waves have won 51 tournaments in her career.
GOLF HISTORY — The Waves have appeared in the NCAA Championships 12 times in the last 21 years, and have recorded 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 18 of the last 23 years, including a streak of 14 titles that ran from 2002 to 2015. Thirteen different players have earned All-American honors a total of 29 times, including Hira Naveed last season. LPGA Tour players have included Katherine (Hull) Kirk, Lindsey Wright, Tamie Durdin, Nadina (Taylor) Light, Misun Cho, Carolina Llano, Danielle Kang, Taylore Karle and Grace Na. Hull was the 2003 National Player of the Year and was inducted into the WGCA Hall of Fame in 2012. Kang won back-to-back U.S. Amateur Championships in 2010 and 2011.
ONLINE — Follow the Pepperdine women's golf team on Twitter (@WavesGolf), Facebook (/WavesGolf) and Instagram (pepperdinewomensgolf).
ABOUT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY — Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men's sports — one of just 18 schools to have accomplished this feat — and nine overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a "major" conference. The Waves have won a total of 25 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that's given to the top non-football school, three times (most recently in 2011-12). Located in scenic Malibu, California, the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation's most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #50 overall on U.S. News and World Report's list of America's best colleges.
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