USC clips Arizona State for season victory No. 5 at Ping/ASU

USC’s women hit the gas coming in at the Ping/ASU Invitational, making up a nine-shot deficit from the start of the day to eek out a one-shot victory over host Arizona State. USC has now won five times this season, with the Pac-12 championship and the postseason right around the corner.

The Arizona State-hosted event at Papago Golf Course in Phoenix, Ariz., is annually one of the final events on the regular-season schedule, and a good chance for Pac-12 teams – as well as top teams from the rest of the country – to see where they stand before the end of the season.

For USC, that meant digging deep to top the best teams in the region. Five Trojan birdies over the final five holes at Papago made all the difference. When sophomore Alyaa Abdulghany dropped a 25-footer for birdie on No. 18, it effectively clinched the title for the Trojans.

USC’s 9-under 279 in the final round was the best among any team on Sunday. It got the Trojans to 5 under, one shot ahead of Arizona State at 4 under. The Sun Devils held steady at even par in the final round, but it turned out to be not quite enough.

Washington, another Pac-12 team, tied for third with Northwestern at even par. Stanford rounded out the top 5 one shot back.

The individual title was split three ways. For Stanford’s Andrea Lee, it represented title No. 8 in not quite three years with the Cardinal. UCLA’s Bethany Wu logged her first win. Stephanie Lau of Northwestern was also in that group.

All three finished at 7 under. Lee and Lau are headed east now to compete in the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur.