The 2010-11 University of Redlands women's golf team went above and beyond the program's previous accomplishments by posting the best showing of its short yet exciting history. The Bulldogs established new records in match victories, as well as individual season and career marks. Former long-time men's golf coach Art Salvesen returned to action after a year hiatus and took over the helm of the Bulldogs' women's program in its fifth season of competition, guiding the talented crew to a memorable campaign.
During the fall season, the Bulldogs competed in two events at Sierra Lakes Golf Club to kick off action. UR faced tough competition in a dual match against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges before earning a second-place tie at the CMS Invite. Junior Tracy Saracino (Englewood, CO) led the Bulldogs during the two-day event, shooting a 78 at the opening round and then followed up that effort with a 76, which reset her own single-round school record. Her first two-day outing of her junior year produced the program's best total of 154, placing her atop the Redlands record book in yet another category.
After a few weeks off, the Maroon and Gray returned to competition in February, testing the team's talents at the Pala Mesa Intercollegiate Invite. While posting a two-day total of 713, the Bulldogs took fourth overall in an eight-team field but surpassed opponents from NCAA Division II Cal State San Marcos, NAIA opponents Simon Fraser University and Biola University, along with Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) foe CMS. Saracino maintained her strong play by taking home medalist honors with a four-stroke lead over second place.
Just six days later, Redlands continued to gain tournament experience by taking on viable foes at the Cal State San Marcos Lady Cougar Invitational. The Bulldogs posted a score of 725 for fifth place in the standings.
Following this event, Saracino joined the elite list of golfers from NCAA Division III, landing eighth on Golfstat's player rankings. Based on her round-robin and head-to-head results, she had pushed herself up the rankings with an adjusted scoring average of 79.12.
Freshmen Hannah Durette (Oceanside, CA) and Siarra Waddy (Temecula, CA), along with senior Kim Masunaga (Cupertino, CA) and Saracino, clinched the program's first-ever tournament victory at East Valley Golf Club on March 13 during the Lady Bulldog Five-Match Invite. While combining Saracino's second-place finish of 78 with Masunaga's season-best round of 98, the Bulldogs outshot the next closest competitor by 14 strokes to give UR its first win.
The momentum continued for the Bulldogs as they accomplished another first for the program during the SoCal Dutch Invitational on March 15-16. Redlands registered its lowest two-round total in the team's tenure, wrapping up 36 holes with a mark of 681. Highlighting the event, Saracino wrote her name in the Redlands record books once again by matching her two-day (154) and single-round records (76) while taking home medalist honors.
The Bulldogs traveled to Pasatiempo Country Club in Santa Cruz to partake in the UCSC Spring Invite, which featured regional opponents UC Santa Cruz, McMurray University (TX), Texas Lutheran University, Hardin-Simmons University (TX) and George Fox University (OR). With three different players shooting under 174 over two rounds, Redlands ended up in a tie for fourth place with Whitworth University (WA).
Redlands continued its tough slate of competition by heading to the CSU Monterey Bay Invitational to face off against some of the top NCAA Division II teams in the nation. After a tough first day, the Bulldogs rallied to drop 11 strokes from their previous outing and finished 22nd overall.
Clinching its second event win of the season, the Maroon and Gray rolled to a 37-stroke advantage over the second-place Athenas of CMS (371) at the SCIAC No. 2 Tournament. For the first time all season, each of the UR scorers shot below 90 during an 18-hole event. Besides the consistent contributions of Saracino (77), the Bulldogs gained an 83 from Durette and an 85 from Waddy, while senior Janae Alvarez (Thermal, CA) dropped 14 strokes from her previous round to score an 88.
To conclude the team's exciting season, Saracino again re-set the program's all-time single-round score, this time by striking a 75 at the CMS Triangular match. As the only swinger in the field to shoot in the 70s, the junior led Redlands to a second-place showing in the team's final competition. In addition, Durette recorded her season's lowest finish by coming in fourth overall with an 86, which marked her 14th sub-90 round of the 2010-11 campaign.
Closing out their Bulldog careers, both Alvarez and Masunaga tallied solid seasons by moving up on Redlands' all-time women's golf lists. Both student-athletes improved their best marks for single-round and career averages.
With the leadership and experience of Saracino combining with a group of energetic and talented returnees, the Bulldogs look forward to building off of their current success as they enter the 2011-12 season. While embarking on the first season of conference competition, Redlands holds high hopes of leaving an immediate mark on the upcoming campaign.