USC preps for Pac-12/SEC Challenge

The USC women’s golf team, still seeking its first tournament victory, concludes the fall season this weekend as it participates in the Pac-12/SEC Challenge in Knoxville, Tenn., starting today through Sunday.

After notching an eighth-place finish in the Fall Mason Rudolph Preview to begin the season, the Women of Troy recorded a sixth place finish in last weekend’s Stanford Intercollegiate at Palo Alto, Calif.

The team has seen up and down performances from its starting five, as consistency has been difficult to achieve. After starting strong and faltering down the stretch in the Fall Preview, the Women of Troy maintained a steadier pace during the Stanford tournament, reaching a high position of fourth place before concluding at sixth.

The Women of Troy finished the tournament with a final score of even par 852, ten strokes behind the Bruins. Senior Lisa McCloskey led all USC players, finishing tied for 10th at 2-under 211. Sophomore Rachel Morris improved consistently throughout the three rounds, placing 16th at even 213. Freshman Doris Chen, who notched an impressive 4-under 67 in her first round, finished tied for 20th at 1-over 214 in her debut tournament, along with senior Inah Park. Highly touted freshman Kristen Park recorded the best scores among all USC players and finished tied for 4th at 6-under 207, but played as an individual and hence did not see her scores count toward the team’s total.

While the quick turnaround already makes this tournament a challenge for the Women of Troy, the team is additionally beset by the absence of star sophomore Sophia Popov, who injured her wrist and bowed out of the tournament on Saturday. USC coach Andrea Gaston confirmed that Popov’s injury is a case of tendinitis, and she did not travel with the team to Knoxville.

While the Women of Troy, who won four tournaments en route to another top-five NCAA finish last year, have not yet fulfilled their lofty expectations, Gaston has stressed the need to be optimistic and focused.

“Obviously, finishing eighth and sixth are not the results we wanted, and we know that there are certain aspects of the game that require improvement,” Gaston said. “However, the potential and talent level of the players are very high, and it’s just a matter of time before we pull through and start playing up to our expectations.”

Additionally, Gaston placed a particular emphasis on the presence of freshmen Chen and Kristen Park, both of whom have posted strong performances throughout the first two tournaments.

“We have two very, very good freshmen on our team,” Gaston said. “This situation is especially harder for them because the transition to college life is never easy, and being members of the team only adds to that challenge. Despite that, we’ve seen what they’re capable of, and all of the players will have considerable time to work on their individual games for the spring.”

Following the SEC Challenge, the Women of Troy will enjoy a long break before beginning the spring season with the 2012 Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge, held in Palos Verdes, Calif. in mid-February.