MILLBRAE, Calif. – The Pepperdine women's golf team got out to a hot start after 36 holes at the Silicon Valley Showcase on Monday, tabbing a 570 (287-283) for first-place.  There are 18 holes to go tomorrow to finish up at the par-71, 6,061-yard Green Hills Country Club.
 
Four of the Waves are in the top-10 after the opening rounds, led by a first-place open for sophomore Jeneath Wong who shot a 6-under 136 (68-68) today.  She is three shots ahead of the individuals from San Francisco and San Jose State who are tied for second.  Seniors Lion Higo (T-5^th) and Kaleiya Romero (T-8^th) and junior Lauren Gomez (T-5^th) are also in the top-10.
 
#24 Pepperdine leads #3 UCLA, who is in second-place, by 23 strokes.  The Waves also lead #25 San Jose State and fellow West Coast Conference opponent San Francisco, the two teams tied for third, by 31 strokes.
 
The Waves big impact has come in par fives, where the team is averaging a 7-under 4.77, leading San Jose State in the category by eight.  The Waves are leading the tournament in birdies (26) and par (117) scoring as well.  Wong is tied for the tournament-high in birdies with eight as well, while Higo is second with seven.
 
PLAYER SCORES

• Jeneath Wong (Melbourne, Australia) is in first after a two-round score of 136 (68-68).  She had eight birdies overall, four in each round.  She was 4-under with four birdies through 17 holes in the first round, and though she bogeyed the 18^th, she got right back to work with another birdie on hole three.  She went up once more on five, but finished with three more birdies on the back without another bogey to lead the tournament.
• Lion Higo (Gold Coast, Australia) is tied for fifth with a score of 144 (72-72).  She finished with seven birdies in total, with four coming in the first round. 
• Lauren Gomez (Murrieta, Calif.) is also tied for fifth with a 144 (74-70).  She had one birdie in the first round, but finished with a strong four in the second to get things closer to even.
• Kaleiya Romero (San Jose, Calif.) finished the day with a 146 (73-73) to sit in eighth.  After a few bogeys in the first three holes to start her day, she settled down and went 1-under through the next 11 holes.  She collected one more birdie on each the front and back nine in the second round as well.
• Sophomore Yingzhi Zhu (Nanjing, China) is tied for 35^th with a 156 (76-80).  She posted one birdie in the first round and two more in the second.

 
THE NUMBERS
Team Scores: 1. Pepperdine 570; 2. UCLA 593; T3. San Francisco 601; T3. San Jose State 601; 5. Santa Clara 606; 6. Washington State 610; 7. UC Irvine 611; 8. UC Davis 616; T9. Long Beach State 620; T9. Wyoming 620.
 
Individual Scores: 1. Jeneath Wong (Pepperdine) 136; T2. Riana Mission (San Francisco) 139; T2. Kajsa Arwefjall (San Jose State) 139; 4. Kate Villegas (UCLA) 143; T5. Lauren Gomez (Pepperdine) 144; T5. Lion Higo (Pepperdine) 144; T5. Natalie Vo (UCLA) 144; 8. Kaleiya Romero (Pepperdine) 146; T9. Caroline Canales (UCLA) 147; T9. Zoe Campos (UCLA) 147; T9. Audrey Brust (Santa Clara) 147.
 
NEXT UP
Tomorrow, the Waves are paired with the Bruins and Spartans and will tee off at 8:30 a.m. from holes 1-4.