Sept. 9, 2007

Orem, Utah - The Utah Valley women's golf team opens up its 2007 fall schedule on Monday at the North Texas Women's Golf Classic at Robson Ranch Golf Club in Denton, TX.

The Wolverines return two seniors, Echo Thatcher and the newly-married Ashley MacKay (Baldwin), both of whom have been with the team since Utah Valley added women's golf in 2005.

"The two of them give us a solid foundation that will really help," said head coach Denise Larson. "They both played well over the summer."

Thatcher figures to be Larson's top returning player, especially after a strong summer that has her currently ranked 10th in the Women's Player Performance Ratings by the Utah Golf Association.

"She's playing really good golf right and she's at a level as a senior where she's figured things out," said Larson of Thatcher.

MacKay and Thatcher, along with junior Kasey Larson, all finished the 2007 spring season strong. All three had their personal best tournament rounds at the Bobcat Desert Classic in March.

Sophomore Sarah Coop is the other returning golfer and is joined by incoming freshmen Abbie Lei Archibald, Taylore Collie and Jade Dickson.

"I have high hopes. This is the first year it feels completely different," said Larson. "We have an incoming freshman class and players that will be here a long time and help build the program. The overall vibe on the team is better than it's ever been. Everybody's happy and positive and it does feel like we are headed in the right direction."

The Wolverines will compete in three other tournaments during the fall schedule and a dual against Weber State at Davis Park Golf Course on September 22nd.