March 3, 2006

SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The Santa Clara University women's golf team will participate in the Spartan Invitational next week, with competition scheduled for Monday through Wednesday. The Broncos look to extend their streak of success, after notching top-five finishes in their last three outings.

The Broncos are coming off of a fourth-place finish at the Red Rock Invitational in Sedona, Arizona earlier this week. After a slow first round, the Broncos sat ninth in the 13-team field. Yet, the determined Broncos rallied on the second day of play, jumping five places to claim the fourth spot in the tournament. Sophomore Corey Utsurogi led the Broncos in the comeback effort, with a second round score of 76. The ninth place finish was a career-best for the San Jose native.

Santa Clara enters the Spartan Invitational, an event held in the Carmel Valley, with five events under its belt already this season. The Broncos capped off fall play with a season-best second-place finish at the Cal Poly Invitational in early November. So far in the spring season, the Broncos have continued to perform well, capturing two more top-five finishes in competitive tournaments. Junior Megan Stoddart, a transfer from the University of Hawaii, continues to lead the Broncos with a 77.33 round average. In her short career at Santa Clara, she has already notched four top-20 finishes.

Last year, the Broncos were led by Samantha Trask in the Spartan Invitational, which is hosted by local rival San Jose State. As a sophomore, Trask shot a 73 in the third round, the best score for a Bronco in the event. As a team, the Broncos finished the competition in 14th place.

After the action next week, the Broncos will prepare to host the Colby Invitational, scheduled for March 13-14, also in Carmel Valley. Santa Clara will finish the regular-season with the Peg Barnard Invitational and the WCC Championships in early April.