The UCLA women’s golf team’s quest to defend its title starts today in the NCAA West Regional.
The regional will take place starting today through Saturday at the Colorado National Golf Club in Erie, Colo., with the University of Colorado acting as the host of the tournament.
The top-ranked Bruins are also the No. 1 seed in the West Regional, out of a field that consists of 24 teams in total, along with an additional six individual golfers whose teams did not qualify for the tournament.
In order for the Bruins to advance to the NCAA Championship in Tennessee, they must finish in the top eight overall at the West Regional.
UCLA is coming off of a disappointing fourth-place finish at the Pac-12 Championship back in April, but the Bruins are feeling good about their chances going into the regional.
“We have a lot of confidence right now. We’ve been playing really well all year; we just need to play one shot at a time,” said junior golfer Tiffany Lua.
Coach Carrie Forsyth shares Lua’s optimism, but also acknowledged the limited time the team has had to prepare for the West Regional since the end of conference play.
“We haven’t had a lot of time. We just got back from conference, and we met with everyone and talked about what specific things they need to work on for this event,” Forsyth said.
“We feel really good; we’re looking forward to it.”
The Bruins are looking to repeat their dominance in 2011 and to triumph at the national championship for the second consecutive season.
Freshman golfer Erynne Lee, who is currently ranked No. 4 nationally, is looking forward to competing in the NCAA Tournament for the first time.
“It was different when I transitioned into the college golf life. There are a lot of expectations to play on this team,” Lee said.
While she is still only in her first collegiate season, Lee looks to anchor the Bruins and to help prepare the team for this crucial three-day stretch.
“We’re always ready for every tournament. This is no different,” Lee said.
“We’ve been getting on the same routine since the conference tournament. We’re trying to get mentally prepared for the tournament as well,” she added.