The USF women’s golf team wrapped up their season at the West Coast Conference (WCC) Championships at Reflection Bay Golf Club in Las Vegas last week, taking fourth of five in a group that also included Pepperdine, BYU, Santa Clara, and Gonzaga. The Dons collectively shot 17 over par in round one, 26 over in round two, and 22 over in round three.
Two USF golfers — freshman Riana Mission and senior Toni Sottile — placed in the top 10 individuals overall. The placement finished out an especially successful season for Mission, who was recently featured as the West Coast Conference’s women’s golfer of the month, and was named to the All-WCC women’s golf team at the season’s end.
“It was a really great spring season for the Dons, we had a few top finishes, and our freshman Riana played really well. For our final event I felt like I had my game back and I played pretty well,” said Sottile. “Overall I’m really proud of everything we accomplished this spring…there are a ton of positives to take away.”
On the season as a whole, the Dons ably ran a gauntlet of tournaments that included large fields of WCC and Pac-12 teams, taking home the gold at Bakersfield Country Club in February and notching fourth place in two March tournaments, the Fresno State Classic and the Juli Inkster Invitational in San Francisco.
“It was amazing to be part of a team that broke so many personal records and team goals. Even though we didn’t accomplish what we wanted to at conference, it doesn’t take away from the hard work and achievements this year,” said senior Annika Borelli, who competed in her last tournament as a Don at these Championships. “I’m so proud of the team for buying into the commitment and seeing that hard work come to fruition,” she added. Borelli also landed on this season’s All-WCC team, putting an exclamation point on an excellent career at USF.
After racking up a bounty of personal and team laurels this spring, the Dons will aim to keep the winning energy going into the fall season.
“I think that it is going to be really exciting to see what we can accomplish together next year,” said junior Hannah Zeman, who took eighth place individually at the Juli Inkster Invitational. “Our whole team is all really close with each other and we spend as much time together as we can…we are always uplifting and encouraging each other to succeed, and I know that on and off the course, we’re all going to be there for each other no matter what.”
