Junior Albane Valenzuela was named Pac-12 Conference Women's Golfer of the Year on Tuesday, the first Cardinal in program history to earn the award. Valenzuela has had a standout year, tying for first at the Pac-12 Championship and finishing sixth at NCAA Championships.
"We are excited to see Albane honored as the 2018-19 Pac-12 Women's Golfer of the Year," Margot and Mitch Milias Director of Women's Golf Anne Walker said. "She was incredibly consistent and steady over the course of the season and really peaked at the right time, tying for first at the Pac-12 Championship and with a sixth-place finish at the NCAAs. She is a deserving winner and we are thrilled that she is the first Pac-12 Women's Golfer of the Year in Stanford history."
One of four finalists for the prestigious Honda Sport Award for Golf and first team All-Pac-12, Valenzuela helped lead the Cardinal to its 10th straight NCAA Championship appearance, where they finished tied for fifth and were defeated in match play by eventual champion Duke.
Valenzuela has already garnered several honors in 2019. She was named a first-team All-American by the Women's Golf Coaches Association and a finalist for the ANNIKA Award and PING WGCA Player of the Year Award. In addition, she was named first team All-Pac-12.
She had a scoring average of 72.36 this season with five Top-10 finishes. Eight of her 25 collegiate rounds this season were under par, while she had 13 rounds at par or better. Valenzuela picked up her first win at the East Lake Cup in October. She finished third at the Stanford Intercollegiate in October, sixth at NCAA Championships and tied for eighth at the Northrop Grumann Regional Challenge in February, in addition to tying for first at Pac-12 Championships.
Valenzuela, who played at last week's U.S. Women's Open in Charleston, was named CoSIDA Academic All-District and Pac-12 All-Academic first team earlier this spring.
