09/05/2012

TUCSON - The University of Arizona Wildcat women's golf team earned recognition in the 2012-13 GolfWorld.com College Golf Preview, released this week. The UA squad is led by third-year head coach Laura Ianello and first-year assistant coach Derek Radley.

Arizona's team is seated at No. 14 in the preseason poll. The Cats won two tournaments and finished in the top five in five events during the 2012 season. UA welcomes back two seniors, one junior and three sophomores. Additionally, two freshmen and a sophomore transfer have joined the team for the 2012-13 season.

Sophomore Manon Gidali is listed among the Top-50 Female Players to Watch. During the 2012 season, she competed in seven events and 20 rounds as a freshman, finishing in the top 20 four times and finishing in the top 10 twice. She won individual titles at the Wildcat Invitational and the UNLV Invitational.

At the Wildcat Invitational, her rounds of 66 and 67 rank tied for No. 2 and tied for No. 6, respectively, all-time at Arizona. Gidali's three day total of 204 (-12) was a new school record over 54 holes, replacing Lorena Ochoa's previous best of 206 (-10) from Trysting Tree Golf Club (Corvallis, Ore.) in 2001.

Also at the Wildcat Invitational, Arizona recorded rounds of 285, 274 and 292 for a total of 851 (-13). UA's three-round total is a school record over 54 holes, replacing the previous best of 854 (-10), set by the 1998-99 squad at Randolph North Course, in Tucson.

Arizona will open the fall season at the Mason Rudolph Championship, hosted by Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tenn., on Sept. 21-23.