SEATTLE – With the release of the 2018-19 women’s golf schedule, Seattle University fans will be excited to note that the Western Athletic Conference Championship comes to nearby Lakewood, Wash., on April 18-20, 2019 at the Oakbrook Golf Club. With a total of five sophomores, two juniors and one senior on the Redhawk roster, this year’s team brings an exciting mix of youth and experience, with players ready to build on their promising performances from the 2017-18 season.
The team will remain in the Pacific Northwest for four fall tournaments, beginning in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, for the second year of the Coeur d’Alene Collegiate Invitational (Sept. 24-25). Following that, the Redhawks depart for Aurora, Ore., from Oct. 1-2 to compete in the Rose Intercollegiate for the first time since 2015.
Oct. 9-10 brings the Redhawks back to the state of Washington, where they will tee off at the frequently-visited UW Edean Invitational in Sammamish, Wash. The final fall tournament stays local, with the Seattle U-hosted Pat Lesser Harbottle Invitational in Tacoma, Wash., from Oct. 15-16.
The spring season sees the Redhawks traveling to warmer climates for four more tournaments, jetting down to Phoenix for the Grand Canyon University Invitational (Feb. 23-24), where they placed fifth overall as a team in 2017. The team then has a couple of weeks to rest and practice before leaving for Kailua, Hawaii, for the Dr. Donnis Thompson Invitational (March 12-13) for the first time in six years. March 23-24 takes them back to the desert for the Red Rocks Invitational in Sedona, Ariz. The regular season concludes at the Wyoming Cowgirl Classic in Maricopa, Ariz., (April 8-9). In the 2017 iteration of the tournament, Seattle U shot its best score of the season as a team, with a three-round 900.
Seventh-year Head Coach Marc Chandonnet expressed his excitement over this coming season, with a special emphasis on the fall schedule. “We will be traveling the entire team to three of the four events because they are all here in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. It will be a great opportunity for our program to be able to get each player the necessary experience needed to be prepared for the postseason.”
Chandonnet also looked ahead to late April, when the conference championship in Lakewood gifts his team with minimal travel time to the event. “With that opportunity comes some pressure,” he admitted, “but our team is hungry after last year’s experiences.”
Seattle U women’s golf placed third overall in last year’s WAC Championship. Three freshmen – Kimberlee Tottori, Keisha Lugito and Vendela From – finished in the top 10 of the tournament. Tottori led the Redhawks in strokes per round for the 2017-18 season, with an average of 75.56. Her performance saw her named to the All-WAC Second Team.