EAST LANSING, Mich. --The Arizona women's golf team advanced to the NCAA Championships on Wednesday thanks to a second-place finish at the NCAA Regionals at Forest Akers West Golf Course. The Wildcats finished the week at 3-under-par, one stroke behind Kent State.
 
Freshman Ya Chun Chang had the best round of the day for the Cats, shooting a 71 (-1) to get her into a tie for 15th at 3-over. Chang had birdies on holes five, 13, 15 and 17. Sophomore Yu-Sang Hou posted a final-round 72 to finish at 1-under and in a tie for fourth for the three-day regional tournament. She shot even par in two of her rounds, and a 1-under 71 on Tuesday. 

Seniors Haley Moore and Bianca Pagdanganan both shot even-par in the final round to finish at even for the week, landing both of them in the top ten in sixth place. Junior Sandra Nordaas ended the week at 6-over in a tie for 27th. 
 
"I'm really proud of the ladies performance," said head coach Laura Ianello. "Yu-Sang Hou finished tied for fifth, a great performance by her. Sandra Nordaas struggled today, but overall had a very solid tournament. Bianca, Haley and Money were all solid as well. We're looking forward to having qualified for the national championship. I know the ladies are excited to get to Arkansas next week. It's a huge honor to even qualify for the national championship, and to defend our title will be absolutely amazing. I know these ladies will be passionate about doing so. Getting there was a great feat."

Ianello continued: "Overall it was a good week, tough conditions, very wet, rainy and cold. The ladies were really tough, I was proud of them. We'll be home for a couple days to celebrate graduation for Bianca, Desiree and Haley. Then we'll get back to work for a couple days and head to Arkansas on Wednesday."
 
The NCAA Championship begins on May 17th in Fayetteville, Ark. at Blessings Golf Club.
 
For more information about the Arizona women's golf team, follow @ArizonaWGolf on Twitter and at ArizonaWildcats.com.
 
Team Leaderboard (Top 6 Advance)
1. Kent State (-4)
2. Arizona (-3)
3. UCLA (+10)
4. Stanford (+14)
5. Illinois (+18)
6. Indiana (+19)
7. Michigan State (+22)
T8. Campbell (+26)
T8. Baylor (+26)
10. LSU (+34)
11. Louisville (+38)
12. Georgia (+39)
13. North Carolina (+42)
T14. Augusta (+47)
T14. Xavier (+47)
16. Long Beach State (+62)
17. Harvard (+64)
18. IUPUI (+96)
 
Player Leaderboard
T4. Yu-Sang Hou (-1)
T6. Haley Moore (E)
T6. Bianca Pagdanganan (E)
T15. Ya Chun Chang (+3)
T27. Sandra Nordaas (+6)