USC Beats Stanford to Win the Women's East Lake Cup
11/1/2017 | by
see also: View results for Women's East Lake Cup, Atlanta Athletic Club - Highlands Course
Sophomore Muni He's comeback win sparks #12 ranked USC to a 3-2 win over Stanford at East Lake Golf Club
By USCTrojans.com
ATLANTA, GA (November 1, 2017) - Sophomore Muni He came back from two holes down to join junior Robynn Ree and sophomore walk-on Divya Manthena as match winners today, leading the No. 12 USC women's golf team to 3-2 victory over Stanford in the East Lake Cup match play final at the East Lake G.C. in Atlanta on Wednesday (Nov. 1).
Related: Revenge is Semi-Sweet at the East Lake Cup
The title is USC's second this season and second in as many tries at the East Lake Cup after capturing the inaugural title in 2015. The Trojans dispatched of Northwestern in Tuesday's semifinals after finishing second in stroke play Monday.
Manthena, a first-year walkon transfer from Siena College, closed out USC's title with a 4&2 win over Stanford's Madeline Chou, completing a strong final round in which she never trailed. Manthena led by four holes through 10, saw her lead dwindle to one on 13, but captured the next three holes to secure her win.
"This [moment] is what I've been preparing my whole life for, so I definitely knew that it would come down to this just with Stanford being such a strong team," Manthena said. "I knew every match was going to count. I was definitely nervous on that last putt, but we've been preparing well, so I'm happy I was in that position and that I could get it done.
"I love my teammates and I love my coaches and I wouldn't be here without them. I'm so happy I could come through for them."
Manthena's win followed He's comeback. The sophomore trailed Stanford's Andrea Lee by two holes through 8 before she squared her match on 11, part of a four-hole, 5-under streak that saw her go 3up on 14. From there He halved holes 15 and 16 for the 3&2 win to even the overall match at 2-2.
"I wasn't really panicking because I knew, match play, it's hard to say, and you really don't know what's going to happen until the last few holes and even then you don't know, so I wasn't really nervous about the fact that I was two down," He said. "I was hitting a lot of good shots, but missing just really easy putts, so I knew I probably had a chance on the back nine."
Ree snagged USC's first point with a 1up win over Shannon Aubert. Ree led 2up through 8, but the match was square between 12 and 15 before Ree reclaimed a 1up lead on 16. She just missed a birdie on 17 for the win, but saved par on 18 to halve the hole to nail down USC's first point.
Freshman Alyaa Abdulghany fell 4&2 in her match with Cardinal No. 1 Albane Valenzuela, Sophomore Allisen Corpuz dropped her match to Stanford's Emily Wang, 5&4. She trimmed an early 3-hole deficit from 3 to 1 on the 6th hole, but was never that close again.
The victory is USC's 32nd first-place finish since the start of the 2012-13 season.
ATLANTA, GA (November 1, 2017) - Sophomore Muni He came back from two holes down to join junior Robynn Ree and sophomore walk-on Divya Manthena as match winners today, leading the No. 12 USC women's golf team to 3-2 victory over Stanford in the East Lake Cup match play final at the East Lake G.C. in Atlanta on Wednesday (Nov. 1).
Related: Revenge is Semi-Sweet at the East Lake Cup
The title is USC's second this season and second in as many tries at the East Lake Cup after capturing the inaugural title in 2015. The Trojans dispatched of Northwestern in Tuesday's semifinals after finishing second in stroke play Monday.
Manthena, a first-year walkon transfer from Siena College, closed out USC's title with a 4&2 win over Stanford's Madeline Chou, completing a strong final round in which she never trailed. Manthena led by four holes through 10, saw her lead dwindle to one on 13, but captured the next three holes to secure her win.
"This [moment] is what I've been preparing my whole life for, so I definitely knew that it would come down to this just with Stanford being such a strong team," Manthena said. "I knew every match was going to count. I was definitely nervous on that last putt, but we've been preparing well, so I'm happy I was in that position and that I could get it done.
"I love my teammates and I love my coaches and I wouldn't be here without them. I'm so happy I could come through for them."
"I wasn't really panicking because I knew, match play, it's hard to say, and you really don't know what's going to happen until the last few holes and even then you don't know, so I wasn't really nervous about the fact that I was two down," He said. "I was hitting a lot of good shots, but missing just really easy putts, so I knew I probably had a chance on the back nine."
Ree snagged USC's first point with a 1up win over Shannon Aubert. Ree led 2up through 8, but the match was square between 12 and 15 before Ree reclaimed a 1up lead on 16. She just missed a birdie on 17 for the win, but saved par on 18 to halve the hole to nail down USC's first point.
Freshman Alyaa Abdulghany fell 4&2 in her match with Cardinal No. 1 Albane Valenzuela, Sophomore Allisen Corpuz dropped her match to Stanford's Emily Wang, 5&4. She trimmed an early 3-hole deficit from 3 to 1 on the 6th hole, but was never that close again.
The victory is USC's 32nd first-place finish since the start of the 2012-13 season.
About the Women's East Lake Cup
Started in 2015 and hosted by the historic East Lake Golf Club Atlanta, this collegiate, two-day match play competition features the top-performing teams from the previous year's NCAA Women's Golf Championships.
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