Spartans Set to Host NCAA East Lansing Regional

Monday, May 6

East Lansing, Mich. (Forest Akers West)

All Day

Michigan State University

NCAA East Lansing Regional

5/3/2019 10:09:00 PM | Women's Golf

Michigan State University and the Greater Lansing Sports Authority will host the 2019 NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championship East Lansing Regional May 6-8 at Forest Akers West. The 18 teams and six individuals will compete in for 54 holes over three days as the top six teams and top-three individuals not from those qualifying team swill advance to the national championships to be played May 17-22 at Blessing's Golf Club in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

NCAA EAST LANSING REGIONAL WEBSITE

MSU Notes in PDF

WHEN: Monday, May 6 - Wednesday, May 8
WHERE: Forest Akers West Golf Course
TEE TIMES: Teams will tee off between 8-10:45 a.m. all three days
TEAMS COMPETING (in order of seed): 1. Stanford, 2. Arizona, 3. Kent State, 4. UCLA, 5. Michigan State, 6. Campbell, 7. Illinois, 8. Baylor, 9. North Carolina, 10. Georgia, 11. Louisville, 12. Augusta, 13. LSU, 14. Indiana, 15. Long Beach State, 16. Xavier, 17. Harvard and 18. IUPUI.

Admission and parking are free

Starting Five...
• The Spartans are hosting an NCAA Regional for the third time at Forest Akers West and first since 2002 ... MSU is making its fourth consecutive NCAA Regional appearance and 20th in the last 21 seasons.

•The Spartans have four top-5 finishes this season, including one tournament win (Briar's Creek Invitational, March 18-19).

• The Spartans had three players earn All-Big Ten honors: Ally Geer-Park (first team), Paz Marfa Sans (second team), Yurika Tanida (second team).

• Ally Geer-Park was one of 72 amateur players from around the world selected to play in the inaugural Augusta National Women's Amateur, April 3-4.

• The Spartan women's golf team has posted the highest cumulative team GPA at MSU for eight consecutive years ... This year's cumulative team GPA is 3.501.

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Young Spartans Making Fourth Consecutive NCAA Regional Appearance
With a lineup that includes no seniors, the Michigan State women's golf team is making its fourth consecutive NCAA Regionals appearance and the program's 20th in the last 21 seasons. MSU's lineup for every tournament this season has included a combination of two freshmen, a sophomore and two juniors. Even in the final two tournaments of the year that were a play six format, MSU's sixth player was a freshman.

All-B1G Spartans
For the second consecutive year, the Spartans had three players earn All-Big Ten accolades. Junior Ally Geer-Park was voted to the first team for the third time, while classmate Paz Marfa Sans became a two-time All-B1G honoree in being named to the second team. Sophomore Yurika Tanida garnered her first all-conference nod in being voted to the second team.

It marked the 11th time in Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll's tenure as head coach MSU had three players earn All-Big Ten accolades and the 13th such occasion in program history.

Spartans Capture Briar's Creek Invitational Title
Michigan State made it three consecutive seasons with a tournament win by taking home the Briar's Creek Invitational title (March 18-19) in Johns Island, South Carolina. MSU topped a 17-team field that included four teams in the then Golfstat top-25 with an 8-under-par 856, winning by eight shots.

Ally Geer-Park earned her second individual title of the season by compiling the lowest 54-hole tournament score in program history with a 13-under-par 203 (67-69-67)

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MSU as a Regional Host
This marks the third NCAA Women's Golf Regional hosted by Michigan State as the Spartans last hosted the tournament in 2002, and previously 1994. Tulsa won what was then named the NCAA Central Regional in 2002, while the Spartans took eighth place, earning the program's fifth trip to the NCAA Championships.

Michigan State will host one of six NCAA Men's Regionals next year at Eagle Eye Golf Club.

Going Low
Spartan golfers have combined for a total of 12 rounds in the 60s this season. This includes six 67's shot by four different players: Paz Marfa Sans (twice), Ally Geer-Park (twice), Sydney Naro and Yurika Tanida. The 67's are tied for the eighth-lowest single-round score in school history. Marfa Sans owns the second-lowest rounds in program history as she carded a pair of 64's last season.

Naro Gives Spartans a Mid-Season Boost
Freshman Sydney Naro provided the Spartans a shot in the arm when she enrolled in school and joined the team in January. The native for Toronto, Ontario, played in five of the six tournaments this spring. She played as an individual in the UCF Challenge and Briar's Creek Invitational and has been in the lineup for each of the last three events. Naro's opening-round 5-under-par 67 helped her tie for fourth place at the Lady Buckeye Invitational (April 13-14).

Through five events and 13 rounds, Naro has a 73.38 scoring average.

Geer-Park Part of History at Augusta National
Junior Allyson Geer-Park was selected as one of 72 amateur golfers from around the world selected to take part in the inaugural Augusta National Women's Amateur in early March. Geer-Park and the rest of the field played the first two rounds of the groundbreaking tournament at Champions Retreat Golf Club. She finished 10-over-par 154 after two rounds and while she didn't make the top-30 cutline to advance to the final round at Augusta National, she did get the opportunity to play a practice round on the famed course in the day between the second and third round.

Model of Consistency
The Michigan State women's golf program has appeared in 20 of the past 21 NCAA Regionals (1999-2014; 2016-19) and has earned a berth in the NCAA Championships 11 times since 2000 (2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017).

In addition, since the inception of the conference championships in 1974, only Ohio State (18) has won more league titles than the Spartans (13). MSU won five consecutive Big Ten titles from 1974-78, and has won conference crowns in 1982, 2001, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2017 and 2018.

Academic Excellence Continues
The Spartans' excellence on the course under Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll has been matched only by their consistency in quality in the classroom. The Spartans have won the MSU Athletic Director's Award for highest team cumulative GPA for eight consecutive seasons, doing so again this year after posting a department-best 3.501 cumulative GPA following the 2018 fall semester.

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Head Coach Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll
In Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll's 22 years guiding the program, she has led MSU to seven Big Ten titles (2001, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2017, 2018), 11 trips to the NCAA Championships (2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017), and 20 appearances in the NCAA Regionals (1999-2014, 2016-19).

MSU has won 38 tournaments during Slobodnik-Stoll's tenure, and over the last 18 years, her players have earned All-Big Ten honors 49 times, including 31 first-team selections. She has been voted Big Ten Coach of the Year on five occasions (2001, 2007, 2012, 2017, 2018).

Slobodnik-Stoll was inducted into the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame in June 2017 and the Women's Golf Coaches Association Hall of Fame in December 2017.

NCAA Experience
Allyson Geer-Park and Paz Marfa Sans will both be competing in their third NCAA Regional, while it will be the second for Yurika Tanida.

Marfa Sans is tied for the third-best NCAA Regional score in program history as her even-par 216 at the 2017 Athens Regional put her in a tie for 10th place.

The Spartans' two lowest 54-hole team scores at an NCAA Regional have come in each of the last two seasons. MSU's 872 in Athens in 2017 is the lowest, while the 882 last year in Austin is the second-lowest.

Seven B1G Teams Earn NCAA Regional Bids
Seven Big Ten teams were chosen to compete in the 2019 NCAA Women's Golf Regionals. Ohio State and Northwestern will compete in the Cle Elum Regional; Indiana and Illinois join MSU at Forest Akers; Maryland is heading to the Auburn Regional and Purdue will be in Norman, Oklahoma.