Women's golf continuing to build in second year
ORANGE, Calif. – With the inaugural season now in the past, the Chapman University women's golf team looks to quickly build into a contender in the second year of the program. With an expanded roster and positive results from the fall, the Panthers have high hopes to quickly climb the conference standings.
Junior Emily Lewis, who headlined the inaugural season with All-SCIAC honors, is back to lead the still young squad into the 2018 season. She has played in every round on Chapman women's golf and led the Panthers to a second-place finish in their first tournament of the fall.
Lewis and sophomore Kristy Harada led the Panthers through the inaugural season and look to be two of the top golfers on the team once again. Both finished in the top-10 individually at the CA State intercollegiate with sub-80 cards in both rounds.
With seven returners and four newcomers, the Panthers are primed to continue taking leaps forward as a program as they navigate through year two. Junior newcomer Marisa Bhanubandh had a very impressive fall season, leading the Panthers in the dual win over Whittier and at the Embry-Riddle Invitational to close out the fall. She currently ranks in the top-100 for Division III with Lewis and Harada.
Senior Brittany Bilek and freshman Lauren Settle have also proven to shoot a sub-80 round through the fall season, giving the Panthers added depth to the new program's roster.
Chapman was unable to fill out an entire roster for the entire SCIAC Championship last season but showed this fall with a second-place and fourth-place finish that the young program is improving rapidly.
The Panthers will look to translate the fall success into the spring when they approach the first tee box of the season on Saturday at The Poet Challenge at Los Serranos. Chapman's first round of the spring will also give the golfers a preview of the same course that the SCIAC Championship will be played on in late April.
The spring season continues with a pair of two-round SCIAC tournaments, which play into the final standings. Chapman will also play in a pair of dual matches against Hope International and participate in the Bulldog Invitational before the SCIAC Championships.
Chapman was picked to finish sixth in a preseason poll of the conference coaches but the Panthers hopes are much higher as the program continues to build.
By Steven Olveda
Sports Information Director
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