Junior Madi Ozuna plays during the Vaqueros Invitational match March 4 and 5 at the McAllen Country Club. COURTESY PHOTO
The UTRGV Women’s Golf Team is headed to the Western Athletic Conference Championship, which takes place Friday through Sunday at The Golf Club at Chaparral Pines in Payson, Arizona.
The team wrapped up the season and placed 16th out of 17 at the Bobcat Desert Classic April 8 through 10 at the Golf Club of Estrella in Goodyear, Arizona.
Head coach Bryan Novoa said although the team is not familiar with the course for the WAC Championship, the Bobcat Desert Classic somewhat prepared them for the feel of playing in Arizona.
“We did get acclimated to, I think, the distance the ball was carrying and the environment of the desert golf kind of feel,” Novoa said.
He said he saw improvement, especially during the past month.
“That’s got me really excited going into conference,” Novoa said. “… Just watching them perform at a higher and higher level, we got better every month, and we got smarter every month. … And that’s all you can hope for as a coach.”
The coach also said the team has made personal commitments to making smarter decisions, not getting reactive when making mistakes and being patient instead.
“I think the main goal is just to be committed to those mental systems, emotional systems and physical systems,” Novoa said.
He said the three freshmen on the team, Preston Saiz, Natalia Rodriguez and Camila Herrera, have improved a lot since they got to UTRGV.
“They’ve all created diverse golf games now,” Novoa said. “They got a lot of different shots in their toolbox. … They’re starting to make decisions according to the environment instead of just thinking that they got to make a perfect golf swing. … We’re developing our players at a higher level and this is going to pay dividends having three young players right now that have a … repertoire of shot-making ability.”
Saiz said the team got organized with practices.
She said she was not too nervous about the championship but rather excited.
“A goal of mine is committing to everything I’ve put into practice,” she said. “And probably not letting emotions get in the way so I can learn a lot and play to the best of my abilities.”
Asked about junior Mercedes Vega, Novoa replied he is “beyond proud” of her.
Novoa recruited Vega after seeing a video of her on YouTube four years ago.
“I found her on YouTube and I saw her hit a couple of short-game shots,” he said. “She’s one of the longest hitters now in college golf, like her ball rolls forever. And she hits it a long way. … This is why we coach. I mean, when you have a player like this coming with so much talent … you get to help her discover her game and discover her ability.
“… She has a chance to play professional golf, I believe, if she keeps working at it the next two or three years. But you look at the maturation of her journey the last four years. … She came here with short game, and now she’s leading with long game, short game and a lot of tools.”
Vega said the team has improved since last semester and has good expectations for the championship.
“I think as a goal, breaking the 300 every day as a team,” she said. “That would be a really good goal to have.”
Vega said her mental game has developed during her college career and she thinks that will aid her when approaching shots during the championship.
