University of Washington
Pac-12 Preview
Dawgs Win Pac-12 Preview in Hawai'i
November 05, 2014 | Women's Golf
Live Scoring
NANEA, Hawai'i – No. 6 Washington completed a dominant performance at the exclusive Nanea Golf Course on the Big Island of Hawai'i, winning the Pac-12 Preview by 11 strokes. The Dawgs finished at 11-under 865 for the tournament to defeat one of the best fields of the season.
“It was a great way to end the fall,” said head coach Mary Lou Mulflur. “It was a really nice win for the team to validate where we think this team can go. To play this caliber of a field and come out on top says a lot about this group.”
The win was the third in four tournaments this fall and could mean a No. 1 national ranking heading to the spring season. Washington finished 11 shots clear of second-place No. 7 UCLA (E), while No. 3 Stanford (+7), No. 13 Arizona (+13), Arizona State (+16) and No. 2 USC (+16) rounded out the top half the of the field, but were well back.
The Dawgs finished with four players in the top-10 as the depth of the squad continues to shine.
SooBin Kim just missed her second win of the season, finishing one shot back of Alison Lee of UCLA for the individual title. She finished at 9-under 210, making 11 birdies and an eagle on the week. Kim played a flawless final round of 3-under 70 that included three birdies and no bogeys. It was the fourth-straight top-10 finish for Kim to start the season. She needs just one more win to become the all-time leader at Washington and nearly achieved it Tuesday.
“SooBin played extremely well,” said Mulflur. “She was battling with Alison Lee who is the No. 1 amateur in the world right down to the last hole. Alison made a birdie on the tough par-three 17th after SooBin had caught her, so you have to tip your cap, but SooBin was really impressive nonetheless.”
Also with a great finish was junior Charlotte Thomas who placed solo third at 4-under 215. Thomas finished with a bogey-free round of 2-under 71 for her third top-10 of the season.
Eimi Koga and Jing Yan were the others inside the top-10, finishing tied for eighth at 1-over 220 for the tournament. Koga fired a final round of 1-over 74, playing in her home state for her third top-10 of the year. Yan finished with a 2-over 75 to follow up her win at the Pat Lesser Harbottle last month. The freshman now has three top-10's in as many tournaments in her career.
Cyd Okino rounded out the Husky squad, placing tied for 34th at 12-over 231. Okino finished with a final round of 4-over 77 also playing in her home state.
The Dawgs will now have three months until there next competition, the Regional Challenge in Palos Verdes, Calif., in the beginning of February. Washington will have high expectations heading into the spring where they will be considered Pac-12 and national title contenders.
“It's a sport where you can't control what anyone else is doing,” said Mulflur. “We will just worry about what we are doing and see how far that takes us.”
Players Mentioned
