Nov. 12, 2004

LAS VEGAS, Nev. - For the first time in the program's history the UNLV women's golf was invited to the Hooters Collegiate Match Play Championship and the Rebels' reward is an opening-round pairing with No. 1-ranked Duke.

The championship gets underway on Nov. 14 at the Mission Inn Resort Golf Club in Howey-In-The-Hills, Fla. UNLV and Duke are part of a 16-team field that features some of the top women's teams in the country, including 11 teams that are ranked in the top-25.

The defending national champion Blue Devils are once again the premier women's team in the country this year, having won every tournament every tournament they have been in this year. Duke entered this season ranked No. 2 by Golfweek, the first time in six years that the Blue Devils were not ranked No. 1 heading into a season.

UNLV nearly cracked the Golfweek top-25 this past week, earning a No. 28 ranking and are led by Hwanhee Lee. The senior enters the Hooters Challenge on the heels of winning the individual championship at the Las Vegas Founders Showdown on Nov. 3 with a three-round score of 215 (-1). Lee led the Rebels to the team championship as well as the Rebels finished with an 875 (+11). Lee will be joined in Florida by Seema Sadekar, Allison Chell, Tina Mabanta and Elena Kurokawa.

Other first round pairings involving top-10 teams include No. 4 Washington, who the Rebels beat at the Las Vegas Founders Showdown, against No. 30 Purdue, No. 8 Oklahoma State against North Carolina, No. 2 UCLA against Arizona and No. 6 Arizona State is paired with Texas A&M.

Teams are guaranteed at least two matches in the tournament. UNLV will play either No. 15 Furman or No. 16 Texas in its next match, depending on results from the first day on the par-72, 7,343-yard course.