Sports

Women's Golf Heads to Lexington for NCAA Regionals

Published

8 months ago

May 3, 2025

Women's Golf Heads to Lexington for NCAA Regionals

MALIBU, Calif. — The Pepperdine women’s golf team will begin NCAA tournament play next week as the Waves head to Nicholasville, Ky. for the NCAA Lexington Regional. The Waves qualified for regional play for the 26th-consecutive year, earning the #7 seed.

EVENT INFO — The tournament will be held at the par-72 6,322-yard Keene Trace Golf Club in Nicholasville, Ky. It’s a three-day event (May 5-7) with 18 holes of golf played each day. The top-five teams will advance to compete in the national championships to be played May 16-21 at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif.

The 7th-seeded Waves will start to tee off at 5:55 a.m. PT on Monday, and Pepperdine will be paired with 8th-seeded Louisville and 9th-seeded Miami during the opening round.

Live scoring will be available via SCOREBOARD and the live scoring can be found here.

FIELD — In order of seeding, the teams heading to the regional are Florida State, USC, TCU, Vanderbilt, Kansas State, Georgia Southern, Pepperdine, Louisville, Miami, Western Kentucky, Morehead State and Fairleigh Dickinson.

PEPPERDINE LINEUP — The Waves’ lineup consists of senior Lauren Gomez (Murrieta, Calif.), junior Jeneath Wong (Melbourne, Australia), freshman Eunseo Choi (Auckland, New Zealand), freshman Grace Anderson (Burlington, Ontario, Canada) and junior Yingzhi Zhu (Nanjing, China).

WCC POSTSEASON HONORS — Following a strong debut season, Eunseo Choi garnered the Freshman of the Year award in addition to making the All-WCC team. Lauren Gomez and Jeneath Wong also made the All-WCC team.

NCAA HISTORY — Pepperdine is competing in NCAA Regional play for the 26th-consecutive tournament. The Waves have advanced to the NCAA Championships 14 times, last making it in 2024. The Waves best-ever NCAA Tournament finish was second in 2003 when the tournament was still stroke-play format. Pepperdine has recorded four top-five and nine top-10 finishes at nationals. The Waves NCAA Championship top-five finishes include 2nd (2003), 3rd (2006), 4th (2005) and 5th (2023 and 1999).

The Waves best-ever finish at a regional was a tie for first place twice – first at the 2002 NCAA West Regional at Stanford and then again two years ago at the NCAA San Antonio Regional. The top individual finish was a tie for second place by Katherine Hull that year and by Tatiana Wijaya in 2017.

RANKINGS — Pepperdine sits 40th in the most recent NCAA rankings. In the WAGR, Eunseo Choi is ranked #73, while Jeneath Wong is ranked #91 and has ranked as high as #45. Additionally, Lauren Gomez is #105 in the WAGR.

LAST TIME OUT — The Waves last competed at the WCC Championship April 17-19, where the squad finished in 2nd at 7-over with a three-day total of 871 (289-290-292) at the Green Valley Country Club.

Jeneath Wong led the Waves with a 3-under 213 as she earned her fourth top-10 finish of the season, and the 12th such finish of her career.

TEAM EFFORT — Pepperdine has amassed a 290.33 team scoring average through 30 rounds of action so far this season, impressing with a 72.58 collective scoring average, which is on track to be one of the program’s best scoring averages. The Waves best season came just two years ago when they posted a 288.20, while Pepperdine also recorded a 289.80 average last year.

RECORD BOOK WATCH — Jeneath Wong sits at the top of the record book in career scoring, having posted a 72.46 score in 82 rounds played. Lauren Gomez trails closely behind in third with a career average of 72.92 in her 126 rounds completed, while Yingzhi Zhu is 18th on the scoring list with an average of 75.46 over her 78 rounds played.

Additionally, Gomez is currently second in the program record books with 37 career below-par rounds – one such round away from moving into a tie for first – while Wong is 6th on that list with 30 career below-par rounds. Gomez is tied for 8th with 17 all-time top-10 finishes as a Wave, and she’s 10th with 24 all-time top-20 finishes in her career.

Gomez also notched her name in the record books under lowest 54-hole score, tying for third after posting an 11-under 205 to win the first tournament of the season – the Branch Law Firm Dick McGuire Invitational. She had another solid tournament in the following showing and now ties for eighth after having marked a 9-under 207 at the Golfweek Red Sky Classic.

ROSTER — The Waves return four of seven players, four of which saw action in the NCAA Championships last season. Senior Lauren Gomez returns to the squad after winning her second individual WCC Championship last spring, and so does two-time All-American and 2024 WCC Player of the Year, junior Jeneath Wong. Additionally, senior KaYee Kwok and junior Yingzhi Zhu have returned. Pepperdine adds three freshmen to the ranks, Grace Anderson (Burlington, Ontario, Canada), Eunseo Choi (Auckland, New Zealand) and Nishna Patel (Mumbai, India). This year, Pepperdine has eight players (two seniors, two juniors, and three freshmen).

2023-24 RECAP — The Waves are coming off their 25th-straight NCAA Regional and the program’s 14th all-time NCAA Finals appearance in 2024. Pepperdine also won the program’s 21st WCC Championship in the last 26 years last season. The Waves finished ranked #21 in the WGCA Coach’s Poll, after recording four first-place tournament finishes – Dick McGuire Invitational, Golfweek Red Sky Classic, Silicon Valley Showcase and WCC Championships – throughout the 2023-24 campaign. The Waves had two individual wins in tournaments last season, first with Jeneath Wong‘s first collegiate victory at the Silicon Valley Showcase and then with Lauren Gomez taking home the top spot at the WCC Championships for the second time in her career.

Wong garnered WGCA and Golfweek All-American with honorable mention status and earned WCC Player of the Year acclaim. Wong, Gomez and now-graduated seniors Lion Higo and Kaleiya Romero earned All-WCC first team nods. Head Coach Laurie Gibbs earned WCC Coach of the Year honors for the 16th time in her career.

GIBBS — Under the direction of Laurie Gibbs, who is now in her 32nd season as head coach, Pepperdine has earned a place as one of the nation’s top golf programs. Gibbs has been honored 16 times as the WCC’s Coach of the Year, was tabbed the West Region Coach of the Year on three occasions and was selected the National Coach of the Year by Golfweek in 2004-05 and 2022-23. Gibbs was inducted into the WGCA Coaches Hall of Fame in December 2015. The Waves have won 60 tournaments in her career.

GOLF HISTORY — The Waves have qualified for 14 NCAA Championships, and have recorded nine top-10 finishes and five top-five showings, including a program-best second-place result in 2003. The Waves have won West Coast Conference championships in 21 of the 27 tournaments ever held, including a streak of 14 titles that ran from 2002 to 2015. Sixteen different players have earned All-American honors a total of 32 times. LPGA Tour players have included Katherine (Hull) Kirk, Lindsey Wright, Tamie Durdin, Nadina (Taylor) Light, Misun Cho, Carolina Llano, Danielle Kang, Taylore Karle and Grace Na. Hull was the 2003 National Player of the Year and was inducted into the WGCA Hall of Fame in 2012. Kang won back-to-back U.S. Amateur Championships in 2010 and 2011 and was a U.S. Olympian in 2021.

ABOUT PEPPERDINE — Pepperdine boasts a one-of-a-kind athletic department with unprecedented success for a school of its size. The Waves have won NCAA Division I championships in five different men’s sports — one of just 20 schools to have accomplished this feat — and 10 overall. Of this elite group, Pepperdine has the smallest undergraduate enrollment, is the only school without football and is the only university that has not been affiliated with a “major” conference. The Waves have won a total of 26 team or individual national championships in their history. Pepperdine has also earned the Division I-AAA All-Sports Trophy, an award based on postseason success that’s given to the top non-football school, four times (most recently in 2022-23). Located in scenic Malibu, California, the university overlooks the Pacific Ocean and its campus and athletic facilities are regularly voted among the nation’s most beautiful. Pepperdine, which is affiliated with the Church of Christ, ranks #80 overall on U.S. News and World Report’s list of America’s best colleges.

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Brittnay Estes – Assistant Coach/Recruiting Coordinator – Women’s Volleyball Coaches

Published

2 hours ago

January 5, 2026

Your Sports Nation

Estes enteres her second season with the Wolfpack after being hired as an assistant coach/recruiting coordinator in February 2025. Her main focus is working with the middle blockers and running the Pack’s defense.

“Brittnay is the perfect addition to our staff. She comes to us highly-recommended and is a very well-respected coach in the volleyball community. I am excited to add her energy, extreme enthusiasm and competitiveness to our gym,” said Wargo-Kearney. “Brittnay is a great relationship builder and will have the trust of our players, as well as future Wolfpack athletes. I have no doubt her impact on our program will make us stronger and she will continue to put together strong recruiting classes as our recruiting coordinator. I am fired up to welcome her to Raleigh!”

Estes joins the Pack after spending the last four seasons at her alma mater, Lipscomb.

She helped coach the 2023 ASUN Player of the Year, Meg Mersman, to All-American, All-Region honors, in addition to three All-ASUN honors.

In her first season with the Bison in 2020, she helped guide the squad to their seventh ASUN Regular Season Championship and seventh Tournament Championship after the group finished with a 14-2 overall record and 11-1 conference record.

Prior to joining the staff in Nashville, Estes spent five years in Los Angeles, California where she played one season of beach volleyball for Loyola Marymount as a graduate student before playing pro for the Associate of Volleyball Professionals (AVP), the country’s most extensive premiere beach volleyball tour.

A standout outside hitter for the Bison, the Palm Harbor, Florida native was a four year starter and was tabbed the 2015 Conference Player of the Year. During her senior campaign, she was tabbed the ASUN Tournament MVP. She remains in the top-five in the Lipscomb record book for several stats, including kills per set and kills per set in a five set match.

Over the course of her time in Nashville, she collected two All-Conference selections, two All-Tournament team nods, and four Player of the Week honors. She was also a two-time AVCA All-Region honoree. In 2020, she was named to the ASUN All-Decade team.

Estes graduated from Lipscomb in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and New Media. She also earned her master’s degree from Loyola Marymount in Educational Studies.

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This Week in Wake Forest Women’s Athletics – Presented by Truist (Jan. 5-11)

Published

3 hours ago

January 5, 2026

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WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Truist, a longstanding partner of Wake Forest University who is An Official Banking Partner of Wake Forest Athletics and the Presenting Partner of Wake Forest Women’s Athletics brings Deacon Nation this weekly update from the Demon Deacons women’s programs:

Women’s Basketball:
- Wake Forest began the month with a 74-55 victory over Pitt on Jan. 1, as the Demon Deacons shared the ball at an elite rate, assisting on 26 of the 29 made baskets in the win over the Panthers.
- It marked the first time since the 2019-20 season that the Deacs started ACC play at 2-1.
- The Demon Deacons now turn the attention to the California swing, first facing Stanford on Thursday before concluding the trip against Cal on Sunday.

Track & Field:
- The Wake Forest women’s track and field team are set to return to action with three meets during the month of January.
  - The Demon Deacons begin 2026 by competing in the Mondo College Invitational (Jan. 17) at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem.
  - The Deacs will then have a dual slate during the final week of the month, with one group heading to Lynchburg, Va. to compete at the Brant Tolsma Invitational (Jan. 30-31), while another group traveling to Boston for the John Thomas Terrier Classic (Jan. 31).

Volleyball:
- Head coach Jeff Hulsmeyer and Demon Deacons volleyball recently announced three additions in middle blocker Catherine Burke, libero Andrea Roman and outside hitter Amina N’Diaye.
  - Burke comes to Wake Forest from Penn State, where she was a member of the Nittany Lions’ 2024 National Championship team. Off the court, she earned a spot on the 2024 Academic All-Big Ten Team.
  - Roman was one of the country’s top defenders this past fall as a junior at Little Rock, finishing second in the NCAA in total digs (632) while being named the OVC Defensive Player of the Year. The Humacao, Puerto Rico, native earned multiple all-OVC honors during her three years with the Trojans.
  - N’Diaye spent her freshman season at Miami, helping the Hurricanes rank as a top-15 team nationally for the majority of the fall en route to making an appearance in the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. A key piece of Miami’s core of hitters, she was third on the roster in kills (139) in 27 matches.

About Truist
Truist Financial Corporation is a purpose-driven financial services company committed to inspiring and building better lives and communities. Truist has leading market share in many high-growth markets in the country, and offers a wide range of products and services through our retail and small business banking, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, insurance, wealth management, and specialized lending businesses. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Truist is a top 10 U.S. commercial bank with total assets of $574 billion as of March 31, 2023. Truist Bank, Member FDIC. Learn more at Truist.com.

About Wake Forest University

Wake Forest University is known for its distinctive combination of world-class academics, unrivaled campus experience, intimate learning environment and Power 4 athletics in a top-growing metro market. A Charter member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Demon Deacons have won 59 conference titles and are one of nine ACC schools to win 11 or more national championships. Additionally, with 1.7 million people within 30 miles of campus, Wake Forest anchors the Winston-Salem and Triad market, which ranks as ESPN’s seventh-best nationally from a viewership perspective.

Wake Forest’s comprehensive excellence includes its highly regarded school of medicine, business school, law school, innovative department of engineering and its nationally renowned Program for Leadership and Character, which prepares students to live with purpose, integrity and courage. Additionally, Wake Forest has campuses across Winston-Salem, Charlotte and Washington, D.C. – providing many academic offerings to students from across the nation and around the world.

Learn more about Wake Forest University at www.wfu.edu and at GoDeacs.com.

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Tyler Legacy lands 5 on 6A All-State volleyball team

Published

3 hours ago

January 5, 2026

Your Sports Nation

LONGVIEW — Five Tyler Legacy volleyball players earned honors on the Blue Bell/Texas Sports Writers Association Class 6A All-State Volleyball Team, the organization announced on Monday.

Taylor Woods and Maddie Goin were honorable mention selections as outside hitters. Mikel Reed and Aubrey Felton earned honorable mention honors at middle blocker. Kate Priest was an honorable mention pick at libero/defensive specialist.

Woods, a Louisiana Tech signee, had 379 kills, 285 digs, 25 blocks, 44 aces, 497 serve/receive receptions and a 2.08 average. Goin had 235 kills, 194 digs, 21 blocks, 300 serve/receive receptions and a 2.04 average. Reed had 124 kills, 52 blocks and 48 digs. Felton had 112 kills, 62 blocks, 13 aces and 41 digs. Priest had 328 digs, 419 serve/receive receptions and a 2.11 average.

The Lady Raiders went 22-10, qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2021 and won a playoff match for the first time since 2007.

Longview’s Triniti Jackson was a third-team pick at setter. Teammates Alyssa Grissom, Jaharia Hunter and Landry Tubb were honorable mention selections at middle blocker, outside hitter and libero/defensive specialist, respectively.

Jackson had 702 assists, 401 kills, 313 digs, 45 blocks and 60 aces. Grissom had 201 kills, 91 blocks, 31 aces and 56 digs. Hunter had 331 kills, 222 digs and 32 blocks. Tubb had 628 digs, 28 aces and 42 assists.

State champions Byron Nelson (Division I) and Southlake Carroll (Division II) earned the top superlatives in voting. Byron Nelson’s Sophee Peterson was named Player of the Year in Class 6A, and Leslie Jackson of Southlake Carroll earned Coach of the Year honors.

Voting was conducted by TSWA members based on nominations from coaches and TSWA members from around the state.

COACH OF THE YEAR: Leslie Jackson, Southlake Carroll

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Sophee Peterson, Byron Nelson

FIRST TEAM

Middle Blockers: Kinsley Young, Southlake Carroll; Camille Presley, Austin; Kerington Thornton, Round Rock

Outside Hitters: Layla Austin, Southlake Carroll; Avery Koonsen, Pearland Dawson; Marlee Lightsey, Comal Canyon

Setter: Sophee Peterson, Byron Nelson

Libero/Defensive Specialist: Jenna Thedford, Pearland Dawson

SECOND TEAM

Middle Blockers: Taliah Angwekwe, Stony Point; Callie Funk, Katy Tompkins; Keaton Points, Pearland Dawson

Outside Hitters: Kylie Kleckner, Byron Nelson; Riley Malloy, Austin; Saniya Reynolds, Cy Ranch

Setter: Logan Sanders, Comal Canyon

Libero/Defensive Specialist: Taylor Wright, Copperas Cove

THIRD TEAM

Middle Blockers: Ryea Jackson, Duncanville; (tie) Madyson Carr, Cy Ranch; (tie) Micah Rusher, Oak Ridge

Outside Hitters: Kylie Rodriguez, Forney; Ashley Seay, Byron Nelson; Jaylyn Tuiasosopo, O’Connor

Setter: (tie) Triniti Jackson, Longview; Audrey Cook, Stratford

Libero/Defensive Specialist: Emerson Chang, Manvel

HONORABLE MENTION

Middle Blockers: Carinne Bouie, Goose Creek Memorial; Mikel Reed, Tyler Legacy; Aubrey Felton, Tyler Legacy; Khadijah Blue, Cibolo Steele; Mia Carrasco, Eastlake; Alyssa Grissom, Longview; Carolina Elizondo, Laredo Alexander; Jocelyn Joyner, O’Connor

Outside Hitters: Jaharia Hunter, Longview; Taylor Woods, Tyler Legacy; Nevah English, Manvel; Karina Deylen Mendivil, James Madison; Sloane Ranney, Pearland Dawson; Simone Heard, Plano East; Giselle Gandara, Eastlake; Leila Ceaser, Oak Ridge; Jasmyn Walker, Manvel; Peyton Smith, Duncanville; Maddie Goin, Tyler Legacy; Elisa St. Rose, Katy Thompson; Halle Thompson, Grand Oaks; Gwen Koss, Stafford; Mary-Christine Crutcher, Mansfield

Setter: Olivia Pena, O’Connor; Maggie McCarroll, Austin; Tinsley Welker, Fort Bend Austin; London King, Manvel

Libero/Defensive Specialist: Kaylee Parker, Cy Ranch; Landry Tubb, Longview; Isabella Cordaway-Dreier, Round Rock; Lainey Monroe, Katy Tompkins; Kate Priest, Tyler Legacy

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HPISD Board of Trustees Honors Volleyball Team

Published

4 hours ago

January 5, 2026

Your Sports Nation

The Highland Park ISD board of trustees recognized the district’s history-making volleyball team at its Dec. 16 meeting.

Head coach Michael Dearman called the Class 5A Division I state champions “a very special team.”

“We, of course, were chock full of talent. You’re looking at several All Americans here. But that’s not the real story about this team. The real story about this team is about closeness, and the family, and the trust that we had with one another,” he said. “They played for each other. It was an amazing, amazing experience.”

Dearman recognized each Lady Scot and the team’s coaches individually.

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Volleyball Signs Olivia Ruy – Utah State University Athletics

Published

4 hours ago

January 5, 2026

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LOGAN, Utah – Utah State head volleyball coach Keith Smith announced the signing of Olivia Ruy on Monday.

Ruy, a 6-foot-2 outside hitter originally from Salt Lake City, Utah, spent the past season at Maryland, making 10 starts and appearing in 24 matches and 63 total sets. Ruy totaled 126.5 points last season, averaging 2.01 per set, and recorded 112 kills, 71 digs, 20 blocks and three aces. She posted a season-high 16 kills against Davidson, also clearing double-digits with 12 kills against Iowa. Ruy posted a season-high 13 digs against Coastal Carolina, narrowly missing a double-double with nine kills.

Prior to Maryland, Ruy spent two years at Arkansas, redshirting in 2023 before making 24 starts and appearing in 25 games in 2024. As a redshirt freshman, Ruy ranked third on the team in total kills (221), kills per set (2.81) and service aces (13), also totaling 123 digs and 25 blocks. She recorded 11 double-digit kill matches and posted three double-doubles during SEC play, doing so with 11 kills and 10 digs against Florida, 12 kills and 11 digs at Ole Miss, 16 kills and a season-high 14 digs against Oklahoma. She earned SEC Co-Freshman of the Week honors on Nov. 11 after posting a career high 17 kills and .452 hitting percentage in the Razorbacks’ sweep of South Carolina.

Ruy was a four-year starting outside hitter for Woods Cross (Utah) High School where she was named to the All-State Team as well as All-Region in each of her four seasons. Ruy led the Wildcats in kills per set (4.0), overall kills (417) and aces (76) her senior season and led the team high in kills per set and aces per set in three of four seasons in high school. Ruy also played for Club V Volleyball, where she placed third nationally and was a three-time Under Armour All-American camp invitee.

Fans can follow the Aggie volleyball program on Twitter, @USUVolleyball, on Facebook at /USUVolleyball or on Instagram, @usuvolleyball. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter, @USUAthletics, Facebook at /USUAthletics and on Instagram, @USUAthletics.

– USU –

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Red Devils Rank 37th in Learfield Directors’ Cup Standings Thru Fall Season

Published

4 hours ago

January 5, 2026

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CLEVELAND – After a fantastic fall season that saw six teams earn Centennial Conference postseason action and two teams as well as two individuals participate in NCAA Championship play, Dickinson College ranks 37th in the Learfield Directors’ Cup Standings as announced by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).

The Learfield Directors’ Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution’s finish in NCAA Championships.

Dickinson racked up 158 points thanks to 73 points given to men’s soccer following their second straight run to the NCAA Quarterfinals. Field Hockey was also a major contributor to the Red Devils ranking claiming 53 points after first year head coach Maggie Sohns guided her side to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. Men’s Cross Country grabbed 32 points thanks to sending the pair of Nathan Caldwell and Luke Knestout to the NCAA Championship race.

The Red and White ranks second among Centennial Conference members, trailing second-place Johns Hopkins (454.50 pts) and hold a 20 point cushion on Swarthmore who sits right behind DC in 38th.

NACDA will release another set of rankings on April 2, 2026, following the winter season, before the final standings are announced June 9, 2026, after the completion of the 2025-26 academic year.

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