May 7, 2008

• Complete NCAA West Regional Notes

Crane Selected All-ACC

Q&A With Crane

•CAROLINA IN THE NCAA REGIONALS: The Tar Heels' participation in the 2008 NCAA West Regional marks their first appearance in the West Regional and their 15th appearance in the NCAA Regionals. Carolina has played in the NCAA East Regional 14 times since the regional format was instituted in women's golf in 1993 - 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2007. In the Tar Heels' 14 previous Regional appearances, Carolina's top performance came in 1993 when it finished in fourth place and Tar Heel Kimberly Byham won the individual title by two strokes with a 213 total after firing a 69 in the final round. Tar Heel Meaghan Francella was the individual medalist at the 2004 NCAA East Regional with a seven-under-par 209 total.

The Tar Heels advanced on to the NCAA Championship from the East Regional in 1993, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2003, 2004 and 2007. Carolina has been to the NCAA Championship 11 times - 1982, 1984, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2003, 2004 and 2007.

•THIS YEAR'S WEST REGIONAL: This year's NCAA West Regional will be played at Lincoln Hills Golf Club, Orchard Course, in Lincoln, Calif. Twenty-one teams and three individuals will compete in the three-day, 54-hole West Regional May 8-10 for the chance to move on to the NCAA Championship to be played May 20-23 at the University of New Mexico Championship Golf Course in Albuquerque, N.M. Eight teams and the top two individuals not on those eight teams will advance to the NCAA Championship from each of the three regionals -- the West Regional in Lincoln, Calif., the Central Regional in Austin, Tex., and the East Regional in Athens, Ga.

The teams competing in this year's NCAA West Regional are as follows (listed in order of seed): Southern California, Arizona State, Arkansas, Arizona, Oklahoma State, California, Michigan State, Stanford, BYU, Tulsa, North Carolina, Ohio State, San Jose State, Oklahoma, Oregon, UNLV, UC Davis, UC Irvine, Fresno State, Oral Roberts and Portland State.

•CAROLINA IN THE POLLS: Carolina is ranked 33rd in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin rankings and 34th in the Golfstat rankings.

•CAROLINA'S SPRING CAMPAIGN: Carolina's top finish this spring was a fifth-place finish at the ACC Championship and the SunTrust Lady Gator Invitational. Sydney Crane led the Tar Heels at ACCs with a tie for ninth place while Kate Thomas tied for 13th. Lauren Hunt led the Tar Heels at the SunTrust Lady Gator with a sixth-place finish while Crane tied for 21st. Carolina finished sixth at the SJSU Spartan Invitational in San Jose, Calif., as Crane tied for fifth place, Thomas tied for ninth and Ann Laney tied for 12th. In their last two tournaments, the Tar Heels tied for eighth place at the LSU/Cleveland Golf Classic in Baton Rouge and placed ninth at the Bryan National Collegiate in Browns Summit, N.C. At LSU, Laney tied for eighth place while Hunt tied for 22nd. At the Bryan Collegiate, Crane was the low Tar Heel, tying for fifth place.

•CAROLINA'S FALL CAMPAIGN: Carolina's top finish in the fall was a tie for sixth place at the Cougar Classic in Hanahan, S.C., the first event of the year. Lauren Hunt tied for 20th place while Kate Thomas tied for 22nd. In the last event of the fall, Carolina finished eighth at The Landfall Tradition in Wilmington, N.C., as both Hunt and Ann Laney tied for 22nd place. Carolina finished 11th in its own Tar Heel Invitational and placed 13th at the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship in Knoxville, Tenn. Kate Thomas led Carolina in the Tar Heel, tying for 10th place while Hunt tied for 19th. At the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate, Hunt tied for 21st and Laura Caniff tied for 34th.

•CRANE NAMED TO ALL-ACC TEAM: Sydney Crane, a junior from Jamestown, N.C., was selected to this year's All-ACC team. This marks Crane's first appearance on the all-conference squad. The other members on the squad are Duke's Amanda Blumenherst, Jennie Lee, Jennifer Pandolfi and Alison Whitaker; Florida State's Caroline Westrup; Maryland's Kelly Calkin; NC State's Lauren Doughtie; Virginia's Lene Krog and Calle Nielson; and Wake Forest's Nannette Hill and Natalie Sheary.

Duke's Blumenherst, the individual medalist at the ACC Championship, was selected the ACC Player of the Year while Wake Forest's Sheary was named Freshman of the Year. Virginia head coach Kim Lewellen received Coach of the Year accolades in her first year with the Wahoos.