STANFORD, Calif. – Junior Albane Valenzuela fired a 4-under-par 67 to spark No. 6 Stanford to a second-place start Friday in the Stanford Intercollegiate at Stanford Golf Course.
She fashioned five birdies and sustained one bogey to set a personal best on the course. Valenzuela is tied for first with Hira Naveed of Pepperdine, Clare Legaspi of UCLA, and Malia Nam and Alyaa Abdulghany of USC.
It was Valenzuela's second-lowest score competing for Stanford. Last season, she carded a 66 in the third round at the NCAA Championships.
"I was just pretty steady and patient," said Valenzuela, who hit 15 greens in regulation. "I hit a lot of good shots and made some putts."
A driving tip from Anne Walker, the Margot and Mitch Milias Director of Women's Golf, helped contribute to Valenzuela's good play.
"I fixed something yesterday with coach and I bombed a few," she said.
Sophomore Mika Liu rebounded from a tough front nine to blaze a 4-under 32 on the back side to shoot 70 and earned a share of 11th. Sophomore Kelsey Zeng (t-29) shot 73, junior Ziyi Wang (t-40) 74 and freshman Aline Krauter (t-50) 75.
Playing as individuals, freshman Calista Reyes (t-29) posted a 73, junior Madie Chou 76 (t-60) and senior Sierra Kersten (t-88) 87. Reyes registered five birdies.
There are 17 teams competing in the 54-hole event.
With crisp morning temperatures giving way to warm afternoon sunshine, the Cardinal combined for an even-par score of 284 in the count four-out-of-five format. USC is setting the pace at 12-under 272.
There are 17 teams competing in the 54-hole event.
The tournament is hosted by Dr. Condoleezza Rice, the Thomas and Barbara Stephenson Senior Fellow on Public Policy at Stanford. Dr. Rice served as U.S. Secretary of State under George W. Bush from 2005-09 and is an avid golfer.
Last year's tournament was held at Poppy Hills Golf Course in Pebble Beach, California.
"It's nice to be home," Valenzuela said.
The second round will be contested Saturday and the final round is Sunday. Spectators are welcome and there is free admission.
On Saturday, the Cardinal starts on the 10th tee at 12:05 p.m. and goes off in 11-minute intervals with UCLA and Washington State.
On Sunday, play begins at 8:30 a.m. with a shotgun start and pairings will be made based on team scores.
Stanford is a three-time winner of the event, most recently in 2015. The Cardinal shared the title with USC in 2014.
Live scoring is available at GoStanford.com.
