By: Dominic Cotroneo
ATLANTA, GA — Senior Hannah Kim earned a 3&2 win, but the Wildcats fell to the University of Southern California 4-1 in match play at the East Lake Cup [Par-72; 6,206 yards] during the second day of competition. Northwestern will face Arizona State on Wednesday in the consolation match, a rematch of the 2017 NCAA Championship at Rich Harvest Farms.
LIVE RESULTS (via GolfStat)
Kim never trailed in her match with Muni (Lily) He to claim a point for the 'Cats. When all was said and done, Kim was 7-under and avoided a bogey for her entire round. "[Kim's] match was amazing," head coach Emily Fletcher said of Kim's birdie barrage. "That was pretty impressive. There was some great golf in that match between Hannah and Lily."
Northwestern - 1 vs. Southern California - 4
Alyaa Abdulghany def. Sarah Cho 3&2
Robynn Ree def. Stephanie Lau 3&2
Allisen Corpuz def. Brooke Riley 3&2
Hannah Kim def. Muni He 3&2
Divya Manthena def. Janet Mao 2&1
Down early on the day, the 'Cats never gave in to the deficit to the Trojans. "Getting behind early made it a tough road ahead of us," Fletcher said. "We kind of hung in there, but we just didn't make enough birdies coming down the stretch. We'll live to fight another day. [Wednesday] is an opportunity to go out and get some confidence and gain some experience."
Still, Fletcher sees value in the team's time at East Lake. "I think, certainly above and beyond the golf, this has been a great experience for us to be exposed to the vision that Tom Cousins had for the East Lake Foundation, and to play at a golf course that's renowned where they play the TOUR Championship."
Live television coverage from the final round at East Lake begins at 2:00 p.m. CDT on Golf Channel.
Full quotes from Head Coach Emily Fletcher:
On performance today…
I heard Hannah Kim's match was amazing. I think she was seven under on her own ball through 14 holes. That was pretty impressive. There was some great golf in that match between Hannah and Lilly. Brooke hung in there and ended up losing 3&2. Obviously getting behind it early in those first two matches made it a tough road ahead of us. We kind of hung in there, but we just didn't make enough birdies coming down the stretch, and we didn't drive it in the fairway enough. We got it in the rough which makes it hard to try to hit good shots and make birdies from there. We'll live to fight another day.
On going into consolation finals…
Just that it's another opportunity to go out and experience some match play and play against, whether it's Stanford or ASU, they're both two of the top programs in the country, and it's an opportunity for us to go out and get some confidence and gain some experience. There's no question out here, it's not just about match play, you gotta play good. You gotta drive it well, and you gotta give yourself some opportunities from the fairway, and we need to do a little better with that tomorrow.
On playing at East Lake…
This has been a tremendous experience for our players, for us as coaches. At last night's event, just learning more and more about the East Lake Foundation and what they've accomplished over the last 20 years and it really is inspiring to see how someone can leverage golf in a community and to really help change the trajectory of some young people's lives. I think, certainly, above and beyond the golf, this has been a great experience for us to be exposed to the vision that Tom Cousins had for the East Lake Foundation, and to play at a golf course that's renown where they play the Tour Championship. It's just been a great experience on so many levels, so I think it'll be motivation for us, just in case you need it, to get through the semifinals at the NCAAs. That's certainly icing on the cake. It's been a great experience, so we feel fortunate.
ATLANTA, GA — Senior Hannah Kim earned a 3&2 win, but the Wildcats fell to the University of Southern California 4-1 in match play at the East Lake Cup [Par-72; 6,206 yards] during the second day of competition. Northwestern will face Arizona State on Wednesday in the consolation match, a rematch of the 2017 NCAA Championship at Rich Harvest Farms.
LIVE RESULTS (via GolfStat)
Kim never trailed in her match with Muni (Lily) He to claim a point for the 'Cats. When all was said and done, Kim was 7-under and avoided a bogey for her entire round. "[Kim's] match was amazing," head coach Emily Fletcher said of Kim's birdie barrage. "That was pretty impressive. There was some great golf in that match between Hannah and Lily."
Northwestern - 1 vs. Southern California - 4
Alyaa Abdulghany def. Sarah Cho 3&2
Robynn Ree def. Stephanie Lau 3&2
Allisen Corpuz def. Brooke Riley 3&2
Hannah Kim def. Muni He 3&2
Divya Manthena def. Janet Mao 2&1
Down early on the day, the 'Cats never gave in to the deficit to the Trojans. "Getting behind early made it a tough road ahead of us," Fletcher said. "We kind of hung in there, but we just didn't make enough birdies coming down the stretch. We'll live to fight another day. [Wednesday] is an opportunity to go out and get some confidence and gain some experience."
Still, Fletcher sees value in the team's time at East Lake. "I think, certainly above and beyond the golf, this has been a great experience for us to be exposed to the vision that Tom Cousins had for the East Lake Foundation, and to play at a golf course that's renowned where they play the TOUR Championship."
Live television coverage from the final round at East Lake begins at 2:00 p.m. CDT on Golf Channel.
Full quotes from Head Coach Emily Fletcher:
On performance today…
I heard Hannah Kim's match was amazing. I think she was seven under on her own ball through 14 holes. That was pretty impressive. There was some great golf in that match between Hannah and Lilly. Brooke hung in there and ended up losing 3&2. Obviously getting behind it early in those first two matches made it a tough road ahead of us. We kind of hung in there, but we just didn't make enough birdies coming down the stretch, and we didn't drive it in the fairway enough. We got it in the rough which makes it hard to try to hit good shots and make birdies from there. We'll live to fight another day.
On going into consolation finals…
Just that it's another opportunity to go out and experience some match play and play against, whether it's Stanford or ASU, they're both two of the top programs in the country, and it's an opportunity for us to go out and get some confidence and gain some experience. There's no question out here, it's not just about match play, you gotta play good. You gotta drive it well, and you gotta give yourself some opportunities from the fairway, and we need to do a little better with that tomorrow.
On playing at East Lake…
This has been a tremendous experience for our players, for us as coaches. At last night's event, just learning more and more about the East Lake Foundation and what they've accomplished over the last 20 years and it really is inspiring to see how someone can leverage golf in a community and to really help change the trajectory of some young people's lives. I think, certainly, above and beyond the golf, this has been a great experience for us to be exposed to the vision that Tom Cousins had for the East Lake Foundation, and to play at a golf course that's renown where they play the Tour Championship. It's just been a great experience on so many levels, so I think it'll be motivation for us, just in case you need it, to get through the semifinals at the NCAAs. That's certainly icing on the cake. It's been a great experience, so we feel fortunate.