By Curtis Acosta
Arizona Daily Wildcat
It's going to be a rough return to action for the Arizona women's golf team. After a three-week layoff, the Wildcats are headed to Tempe to compete in the PING/ASU Invitational. With the way that Arizona State has been dominating the world of women's collegiate golf, the prospect of a tournament on their home course is not a pleasant one.
The list of the teams competing this weekend reads like a who's who of women's golf. Joining the top-ranked Sun Devils at the tournament will be the top five teams in the nation. NCAA championship contenders San Jose State, Stanford, Tulsa and UCLA will all challenge defending champion ASU.
Even though they are taking on the highest level of competition outside of the NCAA Tournament, the Wildcats hope to fare better this weekend than their seventh-place finish at the Stanford Invitational March 5.
The UA will rely on sophomore Brenna Cepe-lak to set the pace for the team. Cepelak has been a consistent performer for the Wildcats this spring. Although she had a bit of trouble in Palo Alto, Calif., the Wildcats expect her to be back on track this weekend.
The play of senior Ulrika Johansson has been a pleasant surprise for the Wildcats this year. Johansson led the Wildcats at the Stanford Invitational. She has been the second-best player for the team this spring, and will need to keep improving for the Wildcats to have a successful showing at this weekend's tournament.
Play runs today through Sunday at Karsten Golf Course.