FARMINGTON, Utah — The 2024-25 season starts back up next month for Eastern Washington women's golf and the team has something to prove. Eastern is selected to finish eighth in the Big Sky Women's Golf Coaches' Preseason Poll, announced by the conference today. EWU received 25 points, seven points behind Montana for seventh and seven points in front of Portland State for ninth.

Sacramento State earned the preseason No. 1 spot, receiving nine-of-ten first place votes. The Hornets have won the Big Sky title the past two seasons and four of the last five. Last season, Eastern placed ninth at the 2024 Big Sky Conference Championships. 

The Eagles competed in four events during their fall schedule, completing the final one, the Portland State Fall Invite, in October. 

In Portland, Eastern placed fourth out of 10 teams, recording a 902 (+38) overall score. Gabriella Ilardi placed in the top five, finishing third after shooting 215 (-1). 

EWU hosted two of the competitions in the fall, including the Eagle Invite and the Tri-State Invite. The team competed at the Pat Lesser Harbottle Invite as well. 

Head coach Brenda Howe will continue her 16th season leading the Eagles and has a revamped roster from the 2023-24 season. 

Howe returns three from last season, while bringing in four freshmen. 

Illardi returns for her sophomore season and is joined by senior Kami Twining and junior Brooke Mahler. Twining placed third at the Tri-State Invite, shooting 147 (+3) and Mahler earned eighth with a 149 (+5) score.

The Eagle freshmen class includes Spencer Cerenzia, Natalie Kent, Berkley Ledesma and Esha Reddy. Ledesma tied for ninth at the Tri-State invite, while Reddy tied for 32nd at the PSU Invite (232 (+16)). 

2024-25 Women's Golf Coaches' Preseason Poll
 

1. Sacramento State (9) – 81
2. Northern Arizona (1) – 73
3. Montana State – 61
4. Weber State – 59
5. Idaho – 47
6. Northern Colorado – 44
7. Montana – 32
8. Eastern Washington – 25
9. Portland State – 18
10. Idaho State – 10

 

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ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.

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