Tip Of The Cap To The Women Of Troy...

Before the attention shifts to the Cal men and their run at the NCAA title to cap off the greatest season ever seen by a men's college team, Julie Williams salutes the USC women. Not only for their dominating run over the last decade, but this week's win in Athens, Georgia.

Most interesting to me was the boost SC got from freshman Annie Park, the rare athletes we've seen leave high school early to not only help her team, but become the dominant figure in college golf in just a few months after winning the individual title.

Since the junior golf world last saw her, Park has gained noticeable yardage throughout the bag, something she attributes to structured workouts with the team. USC assistant coach Justin Silverstein walked with Park through much of the championship. In a word, Silverstein said, her game is about stability.

“We don’t have a bounce-back stat in college golf,” Silverstein said. “But if we did, (Annie’s) would be pretty high.”

The whole team knows how to bounce back, something that three of the five players learned the hard way when the Trojans lost to Alabama by one shot a year ago at this tournament. That’s old news, but it doesn’t take away the sting.

“I think it just gave us a lot of fire,” junior Rachel Morris said of last year's heartbreaking loss.