WOMEN'S GOLF NOTES // CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL// FIRST ROUND PAIRINGS // LIVE SCORING // MOUNTAIN WEST WOMEN'S GOLF STATS
LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - With the regular season in the rear view mirror, No. 38 UNLV Women's Golf turns its focus to the Mountain West Championships, where the Rebels and senior
Alexandra Kaui will both be looking to defend their titles from last spring. The three-day championship tournament will take place at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif., April 17-19, with one round being played each day.
The Rebels are aiming for the sixth conference championship in program history and third under head coach
Amy Bush-Herzer. If UNLV can secure the 2017 title, it would be the first back-to-back championships under Bush-Herzer and would be the first time the program has accomplished the feat since winning-three straight from 2004-06.
UNLV wrapped up its regular season slate with a fifth place finish at the PING/ASU Invitational April 7-9 in Tempe, Ariz. after shooting an 8-over 872 over the 54-hole tournament. Kaui was the Scarlet & Gray's top performer in a tie for 21st with a three-round score of 2-over 218, while sophomore
Elizabeth Prior finished two shots behind Kaui in a tie for 27th at 4-over (220).
Last year's championships saw the Rebels beat No. 22 San Diego State by nine strokes with a team score of 13-over 877 (295-294-288) to capture their fifth title overall and first since 2013. It was also the second-largest margin of victory for UNLV in the league championship tournament. Kaui earned her individual title after shooting a 3-under 69 in the final round to finish at 4-under 212 (72-71-69), topping Colorado State's Katrina Prendergast (71-73-73) by five strokes for the largest individual winning margin in MW Championship history. Her 4-under 212 was also tied for the second-lowest 54 hole score in conference championship history. The Rebels return four of five players from the 2016 championship squad, so coach Bush-Herzer hopes that experience will be key this week.
The Rebels, who enter the championships ranked first in the conference in scoring average (292.58), will tee off the morning of Monday, April 17, beginning at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday's second-round and Wednesday's final round pairings and start times will be announced at the end of each day.
REBELS RANKINGS IN THE MOUNTAIN WEST: The Rebels have stayed steady in the top spot of the conference leaderboard with a 292.58 scoring average and a 5.08 average against par. They also own the lowest single round score in the conference this year with a 279, which came in the second round of the Las Vegas Collegiate Showdown in October. Individually, UNLV has four players ranked in the top-11 in the Mountain West, with Raim in third in scoring average with a 72.96, followed by Kaui in fifth with a 73.58, Prior in seventh with a 73.71 and Dubsky tied for 11th at 74.33.
THE FIELD: While No. 38 UNLV ranks first statistically in the conference, both the second and third teams in the MW are ranked higher nationally as San Jose State is 35th and San Diego State is 29th according to Golfweek rankings. Following SDSU is Fresno State is fourth, Nevada, Reno in fifth, New Mexico in sixth, Wyoming in seventh, Colorado State in eighth and Boise State in ninth. Individually, SJSU's My Leander comes into the tournament first in scoring average at 70.92 followed by SDSU's Sirene Blair at 72.41. UNLV is the only team to have more than two players ranked in the top-11 statistically in the conference.
THE LINEUP: The UNLV lineup in Rancho Mirage will be junior
Mackenzie Raim, senior
Alexandra Kaui, sophomore
Elizabeth Prior, senior
Harley Dubsky and sophomore
Alyssa Getty.
TEE TIMES:Monday, April 17: 8 a.m. PT (18 holes);
Alyssa Getty 8:30 a.m.;
Harley Dubsky 8:39 a.m.;
Elizabeth Prior 8:48 a.m.;
Alexandra Kaui 8:57 a.m.;
Mackenzie Raim 9:06 a.m.
Tuesday, April 18: TBD (18 holes)
Wednesday, April 19: TBD (18 holes)
-UNLV- 