Pepperdine Has Long Drive

Pepperdine, one of the top women’s golf teams in the nation but a victim of circumstance, must pick up its clubs, pack its mini-pencils and travel to Chapel Hill, N.C., because of the new post-season golf format installed by the NCAA.

The selection process no longer considers geographic boundaries when determining which schools go to which regionals--similar to the format for basketball--and the No. 11-ranked Waves became the only West team in the Top 25 to be shipped to the East Regional Championships, which run today through Saturday.

Unfortunately for the Waves, the NCAA’s intentions make sense.

Past geographic restrictions had forced national powerhouses from the West to knock each other out in the West Regional, making for a watered-down national championship.

The NCAA’s new format theoretically allows more schools from the West to advance to the NCAA Championships May 23-26 at Howie-in-the-Hills, Fla.

Pepperdine would need to finish in the top eight of 21 teams in its regional to advance to the national championships.

Pepperdine sophomores Lindsey Wright, from Victoria, Australia, and Katherine Hull, from Queensland, Australia, average team-best 73.62 and 74.07 scores.

The Waves finished fifth at the national championships two years ago and eighth last year.

Women’s golf isn’t the only Pepperdine team on the road.

The men’s tennis team, led by juniors Al Garland and Stefan Suter, plays Western Michigan in a first-round NCAA match Friday at Indiana State. If the No. 19-ranked Waves win, they play the winner of Indiana State and Indiana in a second-round match Saturday.

The women’s tennis team, led by senior Ipek Senoglu, plays Pennsylvania in a first-round NCAA match Saturday at Baylor. A victory by Pepperdine, ranked No. 18, sets up a second-round match Sunday against Baylor or Texas-Arlington.