After earning their fourth Big Sky Conference title in six years, the Vikings women’s golf team has already proven themselves as the most dominant athletic team at Portland State this decade.
Now the Portland State has the opportunity to prove itself on the national stage later this week, when they will compete in the NCAA West Regional Golf Tournament in Sacramento, Calif., from Thursday, May 8 to Saturday, May 10.
Despite a mediocre regular season under first-year head coach Kathleen Takaishi, the Vikings found their groove late in the season, surprising the field with a win in the Big Sky Championship.
The victory secured a spot for Portland State among the 63 teams in the NCAA Championships, which has 21 squads in each of the tournament’s three regionals. Along with 20 other teams, the Vikings were selected to participate in the NCAA West Regional, being played at the Lincoln Hills Golf Club.
“We have never been to that course, but we know that there are going to be some very good teams there,” said sophomore Hannah Bews, who took the medals honor as the low scorer at the Big Sky Tournament.
The University of Southern California, Oklahoma State and Arkansas are among the 21 teams selected to compete at the West Regional. All three are among the top 10 ranked squads in the nation.
The field also includes a host of Pac-10 teams, such as Arizona State, Arizona, California, Stanford and intra-state rival Oregon. The Vikings’ team 79.32 scoring average places them last among the 21 teams selected to compete.
“We can get better and we are really excited to be there and compete in the national tournament,” said junior Kayla Morinaga, an all-conference performer.
The top eight teams from the three regional sites will advance to play in the NCAA Championships, May 20-23.
“This will be a really positive experience for our players,” Takaishi said. “There is no shortage of competition for us, but we will try to be ready.”
Should the Vikings continue their surprising and timely play, the team will likely need another near perfect performance from Bews, and a solid tournament from Morinaga and promising freshman Alexia Brown.
“There may be some nerves, but we will try to stick to the game plan,” Bews said. “Everyone pulled their weight at the (Big Sky) tournament, and we can do that again at this tournament.”
Should Bews, Morinaga or Brown continue their strong play, they could earn a spot at the national championship as an individual, as the top two golfers from each region advance to play in the NCAA Championship.
The NCAA West Regional will consist of three 18-hole rounds, preceded by a practice round on Wednesday. That practice round may carry extra importance for the Vikings in their first trip to the Lincoln Hills Golf Course.
“We will have to focus on our course management during that round,” Morinaga said. “You have to work on getting used to the type of course, and specifically the speed and break of the green.”
While this season’s success is not unprecedented–Portland State had earned three consecutive trips to the NCAA Regional’s from 2003-05–the Vikings will aim for a better finish than their previous tournament berths. In those three appearances, the Vikings finished 16th, 20th and 21st, respectively.
“The key for the players is to continue to get better and just play their games,” Takaishi said. “If we keep improving, we can put it all together again.”
Golf preview:
What: NCAA West RegionalWhere: Lincoln Hills Golf Club in Sacramento, Calif. When: Thursday, May 8 to Saturday, May 10On the air: Live scoring available at www.golfstat.com