Stanford Dominates UCLA in NCAA Women's Final

CARLSBAD, Calif. -- Top-seeded Stanford defeated the No. 6 seed, UCLA, 3-2 in the final match at the NCAA Women's Championships on Wednesday. But the score makes the match sound closer than it really was.

This just wasn't a match with a lot of drama, although Megha Ganne supplied a relatively dramatic finish. The Cardinal sophomore from New Jersey drove the 16th green at the La Costa Champions Course for a clinching two-putt birdie in her 3&2 victory over UCLA's Natalie Vo. That didn't officially end the team match, but Stanford had one point on the board at the time, and Rachel Heck was 4 up with four holes to play in her match, which she would go on to win 4&3 over Kate Villegas. Ganne's match still had a little suspense in it as the stood on the 16th tee 2 up with three to play. Given Heck's big lead, when Ganne concluded her match, the Stanford celebration could just about begin.

It was the second NCAA title for the Cardinal in the last three years, and third in 10 years.

Ganne had also displayed a flair for the dramatic in Stanford's 3-1-1 triumph over Southern Cal on Tuesday in the semifnals. One down after 14 holes, Ganne birdied the 15th, 16th and 17th holes and transformed that 1-down deficit into a 2&1 victory.

On Wednesay, Stanford players won the first hole in four of the five matches. Heck and Kelly Xu won the second hole, as well, and the only time either of them was less than 2 up after that was when Xu lost the sixth hole to Meghan Royal's par. Xu went 2 up again on the next hole, and went on to win 4&3.

The only match that flipped was the one between UCLA's Carline Canales and Sanford's Paul Martin Sampedro. Sampedro won the first hole, but Canales flipped the match by winning the fifth and seventh holes. She went on to win 2 up.



NCAA Women's Championships

At La Costa Champions Course

Par 72, 6,297 yards

Carlsbad, Calif.

Fiinal stroke-play results (individual standings are final; the top 8 teams advance to match play)

1. Adela Cernousek, Texas A&M 68-68-68-72--276 (-12)

2. Lotte Woad, Florida State 65-74-71-69--279

3. Paula Martin Sampedro, Stanford 70-72-70-70--282

T4. Aine Donegan, LSU 74-67-71-71--283

T4. Maria Jose Marin, Arkansas 72-68-71-72--283

6. Kiara Romero, Oregon 75-66-71-72--284

7. Annabelle Pancake, Clemson 69-69-75-72--285

8. Julia Lopez Ramirez, Miss. St. 71-69-73-73--286

9. Carla Tejedo Mulet, LSU 71-71-70-75--287

T10. Megha Ganne, Stanford 72-70-72--74--288

T10. Phoebe Brinker, Duke 69-73-74-72--288

T10. Latanna Stone, LSU 71-73-73-71--288

T10. Zoe Campos, UCLA 74-69-74-71--288

T10. Mimi Rhodes, Wake Forest 72-72-74-70--288

15. Brianna Navarossa, Southern Cal 75-72-71-71--289

Did not make 54-hole cut -- 220

T86. Bella McCauley, Minnesota 74-78-75--227


Teams (the top eight teams will go to the quarterfinals of match play.)

T1. Stanford 285-285-285-299--1154 (+2)

T1. LSU 289-286-288-291--1154

3. Texas A&M 281-284-289-303--1157

4. Southern Cal 299-283-296-287--1165

5. Clemson 280-293-293-304--1170

T6. UCLA 291-283-300-297--1171

T6. Oregon 294-283-299-295--1171

8. Auburn 285-290-301-296--1172

Did not advance to match play

9. Wake Forest 295-292-297-290--1174

10. Arkansas 288-290-299-300--1177

T11. Texas 299-286-302-295--1182

T11. Northwestern 285-293-295-309--1182

T11. Florida State 287-302-300-293--1182

14. Duke 286-293-304-301--11184

15. Mississippi State 287-297-301-301--1186

Match play

Quarterfinals

No. 1 Stanford def. No. 8 Auburn 3-0

S. Englemann (S) def. A. Davis (A) 19 holes

R. Heck (S) def. A. Foster (A) 4&3

K. Xu (S) def. K. Cranston (A) 4&2

M. Ganne (S) & C Weidenfeld (A) unfinished

P. Martin Sampedro (S) & M. Schofill (A) unfinished


No. 4 Southern California def. No. 5 Clemson 3-1

C. Parkl (USC) & M. Barrientos (C) unfinished

A. Avery (USC) def. C. Holder (C) 6&5

B. Shoemaker (USC) def. I. Rawl (C) 3&2

B. Navarrosa (USC def. S. Roberts (C) l7&5

A. Pancake (C) def. C. Kou (USC) 4&3


No. 7 Oregon def. No. 2 LSU 3-2

C. Chen (O) def. C.Tejedo Mulet (LlSU) 1 up

M. Nagano (O) def. T. Riley (LSU) 7&6

L. Stone (LSU) def. T. Huang (O) 3&2

I. Lindblad (LSU) def. K. Tsuru (O) 4&3

K. Ramero (O) def. A. Donegan (LSU) 1 up


No. 6 UCLA def. No. 3 Texas A&M 3-0

M. Royal (UCLA) def. B. Fernandez Garcia-Poggio (A&M) 1 up

C. Canales (UCLA) def. C. Fernandez Garcia-Poggio (A&M) 2&1

N. Vo (UCLA) def. Z. Slaughter (A&M) 3&2

A. Cernouseik (A&M) & K. Villegas (UCLA) unfinished

J. Park (A&M) & Z. Campos (UCLA) unfinished


Semifinals

No. 6 UCLA def. No. 7 Oregon 3-1

C. Canales (UCLA) def. K. Tsuru (O) 7&5

M. Royal (UCLA) def. C. Chen (O) 4&3

T. Huan (UCLA) & K. Villegas (O) unfinished

N. Vo (UCLA) def. M. Nagano (O) 2&1

K. Romero (O) def. Z. Campos (UCLA) 4&3


No. 1 Stanford def. No. 4 Southern California 3-1-1

A. Avery (USC) def. R. Heck (S) 2&1

S. Englemann (S) def. C. Kou (USC 6&5

P. Martin Sampedro (S) & B. Shoemaker (USC) unfinished

M. Ganne (S) def. B. Navarrosa 2&1

K. Xu (S) def. C. Park (USC) 3&2


Championship match

No. 1 Stanford 3, No. 6 UCLA 2

Caroline Canales (UCLA) def. P. Martin Sampedro (S) 2 up

Kelly Xu (S) def. Meghan Royal (UCLA) 4&3

Megha Ganne (S) def. Natalie Vo (UCLA) 3&2

Zoe Campos (UCLA) def. Sadie Englemann (S) 4&3

Rachel Heck (S) def. Kate Villegas (UCLA) 4&3