Women’s Golf To Open Spring Season
CORVALLIS, Ore. – A veteran lineup returns for the Oregon State women’s golf team as the Beavers open their 2014 spring season Saturday and Sunday at the 19th Annual Peg Barnard Invitational in Stanford, Calif.
FIELD (14): Oregon State, California, Colorado, Denver, Fresno State, Long Beach State, Oregon, San Diego State, San Jose State, Stanford, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UNLV and USF.
COURSE: The tournament will be held at the par-71, 6,084-yard Stanford Golf Course.
BEAVERS’ LINEUP: Oregon State will go with its usual lineup of seniors Lauren Sewell and Seshia Telles, junior Anica Yoo and sophomores Ashlee Pickerell and Chelsea Saelee. Each of them played in all five tournaments this past fall. Here are their scoring averages from those tournaments:
Name – 2013-14 Fall Scoring Average
Anica Yoo – 74.64 (14 rounds)
Seshia Telles – 75.00 (14 rounds)
Ashlee Pickerell – 76.07 (14 rounds)
Lauren Sewell – 76.86 (14 rounds)
Chelsea Saelee – 77.00 (14 rounds)
FORMAT: Two-day, 36-hole tournament with 18 holes each day. The top-four individuals from each five-member team with the lowest scores for each 18-hole round constitute the scoring members for that given round.
TEE TIMES: There will be a shotgun start at 9 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
QUOTING HEAD COACH RISË ALEXANDER:
“The team has spent a great deal of time this winter on mental training and mental toughness, as well as working on the physical aspects of their golf game. So heading into the competitive spring season we are looking forward to putting these mental strategies to good use. The process of visualizing and focusing things we can control, like our training and preparation, have been paramount in our preparation over the last couple of months.
“We were able to get in five rounds of qualifying before the snow hit last week. Starting the spring season later than last season, and with much warmer weather in January this year, has given the opportunity to prepare to compete. Even with the weather the last week we were able to prepare everyday in some way or another.
“The qualifying that established the travelling five was competitive within the entire team. The freshmen Jesse Hamilton and Krissy Peterson pushed the five starters in the qualifying event, which is something important for this team. I think all the players are benefiting from the training they are doing on and off the course. The team is definitely a deeper team than a year ago at this time. The three upper classmen -- Anica, Seshia, and Lauren -- have all played Stanford combined a total of 39 competitive rounds. Chelsea and Ashlee have also had several rounds on the course. That familiarity will definitely be beneficial as we go into this weekend.
“The most important thing for this team right now is to stay focused on how they train and their attention to detail in that training. With that ‘can do’ attitude and process, the results will take care of themselves.”
A LOOK BACK AT THE FALL SEASON: The Beavers had a successful fall season with a team title at the Rose City Collegiate and second-place finish at the Topy Cup in Japan. Also, Anica Yoo became the first Oregon State player in 16 years to win an individual title when she won the Rose City Collegiate and Seshia Telles got a hole-in-one on the par-3 third hole, her first in collegiate competition, at the same event.
LAST YEAR AT THE PEG BARNARD INVITATIONAL: Oregon State shot a 31-over 301-298--599 at the par-71, 6,051-yard Stanford Golf Course to finish in sixth place in the 13-team field.
Lauren Sewell had four birdies and five bogeys in the final round to finish the tourney in a team-best tie for 17th place with a 7-over 77-72--149. Seshia Telles knocked three strokes off her opening round and doubled her birdie output to shoot a 3-over 74 on the final day and finish in a tie for 26th place with a 9-over 77-74--151.
Chelsea Saelee and Anica Yoo equaled Telles on the individual leaderboard, as each finished with a 9-over 151, with Saelee shooting 76-75 and Yoo posting 74-77 to tie for 26th. Ashlee Pickerell, who made her Oregon State debut in the event after transferring from the University of Tennessee, had a tougher time in the final round as she fell into a tie for 49th with a 15-over 74-83--157.