The 49er women’s golf team will look to repeat as conference champion when it heads to the Big West Championships at the San Luis Obispo Country Club from April 18-20.
Long Beach State captured the championship last year to earn the Big West’s NCAA automatic bid after defeating UC Irvine and UC Davis by one shot. The San Luis Obispo venue features a par 72, 6,168-yard course and is known for tough greens that might make golfers second-guess their line of sight.
“It’s all about the greens, they are hard and fast,” LBSU head coach Joey Cerulle said. “Speed is going to be the key. If the weather is decent, the trees shouldn’t be much of a factor.
“The tournament is going to come down to a putting contest. Whoever is more consistent on the greens should have the advantage.”
In addition to the 49ers, the field will include Cal Poly — the tournament host — along with Cal State Northridge, Cal State Fullerton, UCI, UCD and UC Riverside.
UCI and UCD could present the biggest challenges to the 49ers’ quest for a repeat. Davis is ranked No. 33 in the latest Golfweek national rankings, while Irvine is at No. 45.
The 49ers are currently spotted at No. 78 in the nation. Although two other Big West teams are ranked higher, LBSU is in the exact same position it was last year when it prevailed.
The Beach heads into the tournament after placing fifth at the 15-team Anteater Invitational at the end of last month.
“The team is really confident right now, we have put our foot down, and we are gelling at the right time,” Cerulle said. “It’s kind of like the March Madness basketball tournament. The team that comes in hot has a great shot at making some noise.”
The 49ers will count on the experience of senior Brenda Chhuor and juniors Reina Rogers and Lindsey McAtee. All three competed in last year’s Big West Championships.
LBSU’s underclassmen, led by Monica Villarreal, have made a major impact this year and are the top three in scoring for the 49ers. Villarreal, a sophomore, added a top-10 finish at the Anteater Invite after finishing ninth and has been consistent all spring.
“My mindset is to be positive,” Villarreal said. “We have a lot of opportunity and potential. I’m just going out there to play one shot at a time and focus on just playing my game. I feel pretty confident and my ball striking is improving.”
Sophomore Noelle Zavaleta has also paced the 49ers in multiple tournaments this year, finishing 25th in the Stanford Invitational and 21st in the Spartan Invitational. Freshman Simone Hoey — the sister of former LBSU All-American Kay Hoey, who was a member of last year’s squad — is fresh off a 12th-place finish in Irvine and looks to continue her momentum into the conference championships.
“We are really excited to defend our title and are communicating well,” Villarreal said. “I want to stay focused and take my time and good things should happen.”
If the 49ers want to continue their season and qualify for the NCAA Regionals, they will more than likely have to finish at the top of the leaderboard in the three-day event.
“Our back is against the wall,” Cerulle said. “We have to win to advance and the girls know that. It’s win or go home.
“Repeating the title would be huge, we have never done it before. Losing two All-Americans last year and coming back this year means a lot about the players we have here at Long Beach State.”
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