Deep Field Awaits Ducks in Tempe

DUCKS HEAD TO THE DESERT
The Oregon women's golf team will look to build off its top-five finish at the SunTrust Gator Invitational, when they travel to Tempe Ariz., on Friday, March 23 for the Ping ASU Invitational.

HOW TO FOLLOW
Updates throughout the three-day event will be provided on Golfstat.com and Twitter via @OregonWGolf.

WHEN/FORMAT
The teams will play 54 holes of stroke play over three days of competition, spanning from Friday, March 23, to Sunday, March 25. The tournament will tee off at 8 a.m. PT on Friday and Saturday, and at 7:30 a.m. PT on Sunday.

THE FIELD
The tournament, hosted by ASU, will consist of 14 total teams. The Ducks will be joined by seven of the nation's top 50 teams, including No. 8 ASU, No. 14 Washington, No. 16 Arizona, No. 18 Oklahoma State, No. 19 Colorado, No. 32 UNLV and No. 42 Denver. Also competing will be Fresno State, Georgia, Iowa, New Mexico, TCU and Washington State.

WHERE
ASU Karsten Golf Course, Tempe, Ariz. (Par 72; 6,223 Yards)

COMPETING DUCKS
No. 1 - Petra Salko
No. 2 - Kathleen Scavo
No. 3 - Alexis Phadungmartvorakul
No. 4 - Amy Matsuoka
No. 5 - Madi Daniel
Ind. - Kelsey Ulep

TOURNAMENT HISTORY
The Ducks will be competing in this tournament for the 22nd time in program history. The last time Oregon competed in the Ping ASU Invitational was back in 2014, when they finished 10th overall in a field of 15 teams. The Ducks posted a team score of 20-over 884, to finish above three ranked teams, including No. 5 Oklahoma and No. 12 Vanderbilt.

Oregon's top performance in this tournament came in 1997 with a fourth place finish after shooting 905 as a team.

ULEP RETURNS
After missing much of the fall and the start of the spring with an injury, Kelsey Ulep will be competing in the PING ASU Invitational as an individual. Ulep's career scoring average is currently 75.72.

LAST TIME OUT
UO traveled to Gainesville, Fla., from March 10 to March 11 for the SunTrust Gator Invitational where they shot 27-over 867. The Ducks entered Sunday's third round in seventh place, then shot a steady 9 over to jump up two places and finish fifth in the field.

Junior Petra Salko had a big weekend in Fla. to help propel the Ducks to their best finish so far this spring season. Salko kicked off the tournament by recording a career low 68 in the first round, and finished the cumulative three rounds at 2-over 212 to take fifth place as an individual.

DUCKS GO LOW AT WESTBROOK INVITATIONAL
the Ducks played in the Westbrook Invitational, Feb. 25 and Feb. 26, where they finished with a final team score of 3-over 867 after a solid performance on the final 36 holes.

The Ducks shot 10-under 278 in round two which is the second lowest single round team score in school history. Freshman Alexis Phadungmartvorakul was the Ducks' top finisher after shooting 1-over 215.

ALLSTATE SUGAR BOWL RECAP
The Ducks competed in the Allstate Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, La., from Sunday, Feb. 20 to Tuesday, Feb. 22. Oregon shot 53-over 917 on the English Turn Golf and Country Club to claim 13th place at the tournament.

Sophomore Amy Matsuoka was the Ducks' top finisher at the Allstate Sugar Bowl, shooting 6 over in the final round. Coupled with a 1-over 73 and 5-over 77 in the first two rounds, she finished at +12 overall and in 39th place on the individual scoreboard.

FALL SEASON RECAP
The Ducks competed in four tournaments during the 2017 fall season, highlighted by a fourth-place finish at the East and West Match Play. Kathleen Scavo had a breakout performance at the East and West Match Play, where she notched her first individual tournament win after shooting 7 under to finish as the co-medalist. Scavo was also Oregon's top finisher at the Windy City Collegiate and the Stanford Intercollegiate, where the Ducks finished tied for 12th and 10th place, respectively. At the Nanea Pac-12 Preview, the Ducks finished tied for 10th with Petra Salko as their top finisher.

STRONG START FOR PHADUNGMARTVORAKUL
Freshman Alexis Phadungmartvorakul had a phenomenal collegiate debut, opening the fall season with nine birdies to finish the first round of the East and West Match Play at 8 under (64) and as the overall leader. Phadungmartvorakul's 64 is the second-lowest single-round score in program history. The freshman from Taft, Calif., added five more birdies in the second round while shooting a 2-over 74 to close stroke play in third overall at 6 under. Phadungmartvorakul led the field with 14 total birdies through 36 holes. Phadungmartvorakul finished the fall season with an impressive 74.40 scoring average.

Phadungmartvorakul also had an outstanding spring season debut. Phadungmartvorakul competed in the only singles match played on the first day against Washington State, and won her match 4 and 3. On the second day of play, Phadungmartvorakul kept her composure as her match came down the wire, carding a birdie on No. 17 to win the match, 1 up.

UP NEXT
The Ducks will travel to Napa, Calif. where they will co-host the Silverado Showdown along with CU Boulder. The two-day tournament will run from Monday, April 14 to Tuesday, April 15.