Practices for the UCLA football team are about to get a
different feel.
Construction on two new practice fields for the team on
Spaulding Field began Monday.
The fields, which run east to west, will have different surfaces
for the teams to prepare for opponents on.
One of the fields will be a synthetic grass field. The Bruins
play on synthetic grass fields often in the Pac-10 as schools such
as Cal, Oregon, Oregon State, Washington and Washington State all
sport some kind of artificial turf.
The other practice field will be a natural-grass field and will
feature a new drainage system.
Construction on the field is expected to last until August 1,
which would be in time for fall practice.
Fall practice begins on August 8.
GOLF: Both the men’s and women’s
golf teams received numerous honors and awards on Monday. Sophomore
Daniel Im was named Pac-10 Player of the Month for April.
Im recently won the individual title at the Pac-10
Championships. During the championships, Im lead the Bruins to
their second conference title in four years, shooting 7 under par.
The victory was Im’s second of his career.
Im also had a top-10 finish at the Augusta State Invitational
earlier in April. The Fullerton native averaged a score of 71 in
nine rounds over three tournaments during the month. For the
season, Im is averaging a score of 72.2 per round heading into the
NCAA Regional.
Also, three men’s and women’s golfers were selected
to the U.S. team for the 31st-annual Fuji Xerox USA
vs. Japan Collegiate Golf Championship, which is scheduled to be
held July 13 through 15 at Sun Hills
Country Club in Japan’s Tochigi prefecture.
The golfers, freshmen Erik Flores, Tiffany Joh and Jane Park,
were all selected by the Golf Coaches Association of America.
Flores is a first-team All-Pac-10 selection as a freshman this
season. He currently is leading the Bruins with a scoring average
of 72.1 per round.
Meanwhile, Joh and Park have also impressed in their first
seasons with the UCLA women’s golf team.
Joh was named first-team All-Pac-10 and is currently the
seventh-ranked golfer in the nation. She was selected as the Pac-10
Conference’s Newcomer of the Year.
Park meanwhile has lived up to her bill as a highly touted
recruit out of Rancho Cucamonga. Park was also named first-team
all-conference, is ranked sixth in the nation, and leads the Bruins
with a 72.5 scoring average.
The three U.S. team selections from UCLA were the most
selections made from one school.
The No. 5 men’s golf team will compete in the East
Regional in Orlando, Fla., from May 18 to 20.
The No. 2 women’s team qualified for the NCAA
Championships.
They will play from May 23 to 26, at the Scarlet Course in
Columbus, Ohio.
Compiled by Ben Azar, Bruin Sports senior staff.