Cho, Mao Lead Cats To Top-4 Finish At SDSU March Mayhem

3/28/2018 4:53:00 PM | Women's Golf

RANCHO SANTA FE, Calif. – The No. 13 Wildcats finished in fourth among a top-flight field at San Diego State University's March Mayhem, at the Farms G.C. (Par-72; 6,318 yards). Northwestern fell to Iowa State on the final day of the match play tournament, a competition highlighted by the 'Cats win over No. 1 UCLA.

SDSU March Mayhem – RESULTS (via BirdieFire)
The Farms – VIDEO TOUR

Senior Sarah Cho was first on the board Wednesday, with a dominant 6&5 victory over the Cyclones Nattapan Siritrai. A San Diego native who attended high school just five miles from The Farms, Cho dropped her first hole of the day (No. 6) but evened the match on the next. She then took her first lead on the match's third hole and never looked back, capturing Nos. 13, 15, 16 and 17 to extend the lead to 5-Up with six to go. Cho saved the best for last, carding an eagle-3 on the Par-5 18^th to secure a 6&5 victory and finish the tournament with a 2-1 record.

Junior Janet Mao was locked in a tight battle all day with Alanna Campbell, one in which neither competitor was able to grab more than a 1-Up advantage during the first 14 holes. But the junior won No. 18 with a birdie to break an A/S score, and then went 2-Up on No. 1 to take the lead she would carry into the final hole for a 2&1 victory. Mao joined Cho and Hannah Kim with a team-best 2-1 record during the competition.

Northwestern wrapped up the tournament in fourth-place after the 3-2 loss to Iowa State on the final day of March Mayhem. The Cyclones are coached by Christie Martens, a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and 2000 team captain at Northwestern, and sister of Wildcats assistant coach Beth Miller.

The Wildcats will return to action on April 8 at the Silverado Showdown in Napa, California, the team's final event before the Big Ten Championships.

3^rd: Iowa State 3, NORTHWESTERN 2
Sarah Cho (NU) def. Nattapan Siritrai (ISU), 6&5
Janet Mao (NU) def. Alanna Campbell (ISU), 2&1
Amelia Grohn (ISU) def. Stephanie Lau (NU), 3&1
Celia Barquin Arozamena (ISU) def. Hannah Kim (NU), 3&1
Chayanit Wagnmahaporn (ISU) def. Brooke Riley (NU), 3&2

SF: USC 3, NORTHWESTERN 2
Stephanie Lau (NU) def. Alyaa Abdulghany (USC), 3&2
Hannah Kim (NU) def. Jennifer Chang (USC), 1-Up
Amelia Garvey (USC) def. Sarah Cho (NU), 1-Up
Allisen Corpuz (USC) def. Janet Mao (NU), 5&3
Gabi Ruffels (USC) def. Brooke Riley (NU), 6&5

QF: NORTHWESTERN 3, UCLA 2
Janet Mao (NU) def. Erin Choi (UCLA), 6&4
Sarah Cho (NU) def. Patty Tavatanakit (UCLA), 1-Up
Hannah Kim (NU) def. Mariel Galdiano (UCLA), 4&2
Bethany Wu (UCLA) def. Stephanie Lau (NU), 2&1
Clare Legaspi (UCLA) def. Brooke Riley (NU), 3&1

Northwestern – 3/12 • 298 (+10)
T7 – Stephanie Lau – 72 (E)
T7 – Hannah Kim – 72 (E)
T7 – Sarah Cho – 72 (E)
T55 – Janet Mao – 82 (+10)
T55 – Brooke Riley – 82 (+10)

This year's March Mayhem field included three of the country's Top-6 teams, and a total of six ranked among the Golfstat Top-20. In addition to the No. 13 Wildcats, the leaderboard featured No. 1 UCLA, No. 4 Stanford, No. 6 Texas, No. 10 USC, and No. 18 Colorado, along with the host Aztecs, Baylor, BYU, California, Iowa State and Pepperdine.