CBU Wins Late Over UC Riverside

RIVERSIDE>> A cross-town matchup and unique scoring format gave California Baptist University plenty of motivation coming out of its midseason hiatus for a Ryder Cup style dual match with University of California, Riverside Saturday, Jan. 21. All eight Lancers got in on the action, as ninth-ranked CBU in NCAA Division II defeated the D-I Highlanders, 13-11, on the final hole of the day at the Canyon Crest Country Club. It was a great opportunity for both teams, as it was the first meeting between the two in quite some time. "We really appreciate Coach Mary Ritchie and the rest of UCR women's golf for putting this on," Coach Marc Machado said. "This was a great event for our girls. UC Riverside is obviously a very well-respected program, as the reigning Big West Conference champions." Next, the Lancers next take to the Point Loma Super San Diego Championship at the Riverwalk Golf Club Feb. 6-7, looking to carry momentum over. "It was a total test of depth," Machado said. "Everyone contributed today and that's why the win feels so good. Nobody had any quit in them. The purpose of this match was to get the ladies ready going into our first tournament out of the break." Both teams played a four-ball format on the front nine in four matches, with two-player teams for each school. On the back nine, there were eight head-to-head singles match play. Each four-ball match on the front nine counted for two points, with ties earning each side one point. The back nine single matches were also worth two points. UC Riverside took a 5-3 lead on the front nine, with CBU earning a point on ties from two-player groupings of Samantha Martirez and Marvi Monsalve, Laura Scrivner and Sharon Oh and Jordan Martin and Evelyn Nguyen. The Lancers overcame the deficit on the back nine by winning five of the eight singles matchups. Martirez, Scrivner, Nguyen and Martin all won by two strokes, while Erica Wang won by one stroke to secure the top-team finish for CBU. There were plenty of dramatics down the stretch. For starters, Wang won the final hole and Scrivner won the final four holes to secure a total of four points for CBU. Martin's victory tied things up at 11-11, with Nguyen's match the last yet to be decided. Nguyen sealed the deal by winning her match on the final hole to secure the 13-11 win for the Lancers. "The team was really excited for this," Machado said. "They were gearing up for this for a long time, and this unique, team format really seemed to bring out the best in all eight of our players. It was a great day of team bonding."