Redlands Golf Teams Set Sights on SCIAC Championships
By David James Heiss
Redlands News Collective
The University of Redlands men’s and women’s golf teams open play heading into this weekend at the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Championships, held at the Santa Anita Golf Course.
The three-day, 54-hole tournament, hosted by Occidental College, runs through Saturday. Under conference rules, the results of the SCIAC No. 1 and No. 2 tournaments do not carry over; the winner of this weekend’s standalone championship earns the conference’s automatic qualifying (AQ) bid to the NCAA Division III National Championships in May.
No. 11 Bulldog Women Eye National Return
Photo by Adrian Williams
Kylie McGrath, of Renton, Washington, was the most consistent across both major events, leading the team during the difficult, windy conditions in Beaumont.
Currently ranked No. 11 in the Division III national polls, the Redlands women enter the weekend in a strong position for postseason play. Last season, the Bulldogs earned an at-large selection while ranked No. 15, suggesting they are likely safe for a national bid if they maintain their current standing against a field that includes No. 5 Pomona-Pitzer and No. 10 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.
The Bulldogs have shown consistent top-tier form this spring:
SCIAC No. 1: Redlands tied for second place with a 608. Senior Chloe Phan led the way, tying for fifth (151), while sophomore Kylie McGrath and senior Jizelle Robledo both tied for seventh (152).
SCIAC No. 2: Battling high winds in Beaumont, the team finished third. McGrath was the top Bulldog performer, finishing tied for ninth with a 165.
The tournament winner joins 25 other conference champions with an automatic bid, while the remaining field is filled by nine at-large teams and selected individuals.
Men’s Golf Chasing Automatic Bid
For the Redlands men, the path to the NCAA Championships is clear: they must win the SCIAC title. Ranked No. 53 nationally, the Bulldogs sit outside the typical at-large selection range, which cut off at No. 15 last season.
Photo via goredlands.com
Junior Jay Wing of Riverside is coming off a second-place finish at SCIAC No. 2.
Redlands looks to build on flashes of brilliance shown during the conference season:
SCIAC No. 1: The Bulldogs finished fifth (594), highlighted by a stellar opening-round 67 from senior William Rinehart and a 70 from sophomore Ben Tieu.
SCIAC No. 2: The team improved to a fourth-place finish (624) in Beaumont. Junior Jay Wing paced the Bulldogs, navigating windy conditions to tie for second individually with a 148 (74-74).
The men’s national field will eventually include 34 conference champions, nine at-large teams, and the highest-ranked individuals not on qualifying teams.