Sun Devil Women's Golf Set for Pac-12 Championship

TEMPE, Ariz. - No. 7 Sun Devil Women's Golf prepares for the 2022 Pac-12 Championship, hosted at Eugene Country Club in Oregon.

Arizona State begins postseason play with arguably the toughest tournament they have played in so far, as the nation's most competitive conference hosts its annual championship. The event spans three days, with 54-hole stroke play competition taking place at Eugene Country Club for the fourth time.

The setup is par-72 at 6,267 yards for the Sun Devils' first step of the postseason. Not only is the Pac-12 Championship on the line, but rivalry bragging rights are as well. The highest finisher between Arizona State and Arizona at this event will be awarded a critical Territorial Cup Series point. ASU claimed the point last year by virtue of a third-place finish. The following is a full preview of the Pac-12 Championship: 

THE FIELD
Every year, the Pac-12 Championship features an extremely prestigious field, making it one of the premier tournaments in the nation. This year is no different, with eight teams ranked inside the Golfstat Top-50. That includes four of the Top-10 teams in the country, with No. 7 Arizona State earning the three seed at the Pac-12 Championship. No. 1 Stanford and host No. 2 Oregon highlight the field, with No. 9 USC, No. 12 UCLA, and No. 25 Arizona rounding out the Top-25 foes.
 
NORTHROP GRUMMAN REGIONAL CHALLENGE TOP-50 TEAMS (GOLFSTAT)
No. 1 STANFORD
No. 2 OREGON
No. 7 ARIZONA STATE
No. 9 USC
No. 12 UCLA
No. 25 ARIZONA
No. 32 OREGON STATE
No. 39 WASHINGTON
 
There is plenty of individual star power competingat the Pac-12 Championship as well. An impressive 16 of the Top-50 golfers in Golfstat's individual rankings are in the field, including Arizona State's own Alexandra Forsterling (No. 2), Calynne Rosholt (No. 24) and Ashley Menne (No. 33). A total of 35 of the Top-200 golfers in the nation highlight an excellent field presenting a final resume-building opportunity.

THE LINEUP
After a difficult qualifying session, Coach Farr-Kaye selected a deep and talented group of five to represent the Maroon & Gold. Alexandra Forsterling earned the top spot yet again, a strong candidate to win the Pac-12 Championship. Ashley Menne gets ready for her second Pac-12 Championship, climbing the rankings and playing out of the No. 2 spot. ANNIKA Award Spring Watch List member Calynne Rosholt follows up in the No. 3 spot, looking to continue a historic freshman season. Alessandra Fanali at No. 4 is no stranger ot the Pac-12 Championship, having already competed in two. Grace Summerhays rounds out the lineup, making her Pac-12 Championship debut only four months after arriving on campus.

PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIP LINEUP (HOLE 1)
Alexandra Forsterling - 10:06 AM MST
Ashley Menne - 9:57 AM MST
Calynne Rosholt - 9:48 AM MST
Alessandra Fanali - 9:39 AM MST
Grace Summerhays - 9:00 AM MST

HISTORY AT THE PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIP
No team has enjoyed more success at the Pac-10/12 Women's Golf Championships than Arizona State. Their 13 individual champions are six more than any other team, while their eight team championships are tied for first. Most recently, Olivia Mehaffey claimed the 2019 Individual Championship by coming back from four strokes down on the final day. The Sun Devils last one as a team back in 2009 on their way to the program's seventh of eight NCAA Championships, with Coach Farr-Kaye serving as an Assistant Coach that year.
 
Legendary Sun Devil Women's Golf Head Coach Linda Vollstedt could be considered the queen of the Pac-10/12 Championships. Her teams won it a total of six times, including the first two in 1987 & 1988. Later in her career, Arizona State ran off four straight titles during their dominant run in the mid-90s, a feat that has never been matched since. ASU has three Top-3 finishes at the conference championships under Coach Farr-Kaye, finishing third in 2016, 2019, and last year in 2021. The

LAST TIME OUT
Sun Devil Women's Golf's Alessandra Fanali won the Silverado Showdown, hosted at Silverado Resort and Spa. She could not have asked for a better result in the final regular season tournament of her career, as she claimed an impressive victory by three strokes. Fanali was great throughout the first two days, but still found herself trailing by three strokes with 18 holes left. The deficit did not faze her, as she quickly made it up and then some, cruising past the competition by a comfortable margin. By carding a 69 (-3) today, Fanali was one of only two golfers to hit the 60's twice this week.

It is her second career victory, but the first at a counting tournament, as she won the Match in the Desert as a sophomore back in 2020. She has proved to be extremely comfortable at this golf course, as she finished in the Top-5 at the 2021 Silverado Showdown. Fanali had to beat out an extremely competitive field at the Silverado Showdown, finishing ahead of 24 of the Top-100 ranked golfers in the nation.

SUN DEVILS IN THE RANKINGS
Coming off another solid Spring finish, Arizona State continues to maintain their elite status in the national polls. The Sun Devils are ranked No. 7 by Golfstat, No. 7 team by Golfweek/Sagarin, and are the No. 7 team in the Mizuno WGCA Coaches Poll. With another major challenge this upcoming week, the Maroon & Gold will have a chance to improve upon that ranking.
 
Several Sun Devils continue to be looked upon favorably in the individual national rankings, as Arizona State features one of the most talented rosters in the country. Alexandra Forsterling is now ranked as the No. 2 golfer in the country according to Golfstat and No. 4 in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, the highest ranking of any Sun Devil. The same publications tabbed Calynne Rosholt as the No. 25 and 32 player in the nation respectively. Ashley Menne is making a move up the polls, giving ASU one of the most decorated trios in the country.  Menne is slotted at No. 33 nationally by Golfstat and No. 38 by Golfweek, as ASU boasts three of the Top-40 golfers in the country.

HOW TO FOLLOW
Daily highlights will be featured across Pac-12 Network, Pac-12.com and Pac-12 social media channels, culminating with a special half-hour recap on Pac-12 Network on Thursday, April 21 at 6:00 p.m. PT. Live scoring will be available on Golfstat at the following link. For the latest updates and information on the Sun Devil Women's Golf program, follow our Twitter/Instagram accounts (@SunDevilWGolf), like our Facebook page (facebook.com/sundevilwgolf/), and visit our website (thesundevils.com).