WOODSIDE, Calif. — Both golf programs at Stanford joined forces on Thursday for the annual Big Match against California, hosted at Menlo Country Club. After the Golden Bears won the first two, Stanford captured the title in 2022 for the first time. It came down to the final pair, but California was able to escape and reclaim the trophy with a 4-3 victory over Stanford.
Caroline Sturdza/Barclay Brown def. Christina Ochoa/Aaron Du, 4&3
There were birdies aplenty for Sturdza and Brown, as they clinched the first team point of the afternoon for the Card. Sturdza was steady all day long, with five birdies through 15 holes, while Brown racked up seven birdies for Stanford, including five birdies in his final seven holes. Sturdza clinched the point for Stanford with a deep putt on the 15th hole for birdie, wrapping up a dominant performance in Match 1. Sturdza and Brown won the first hole after a birdie from Sturdza, and then added on another stroke in the third hole, and California was never able to recover.
Paula Martin Sampedro/Kush Arora def. Constannce Fouillet/Eric Lee, 3&1
After falling behind early to California, Martin Sampedro and Arora came roaring back and finished off Match 2 in style. The Card pair trailed by one stroke after six holes, but then won consecutive holes, thanks to a par on the seventh hole from Arora and a birdie on the eighth by Martin Sampedro. The lead ballooned to three through 14 holes and ended on the 17th hole after an impressive finish from both freshmen. On her second shot on the par-5 17th hole, Martin Sampedro landed about 10 feet away from the pin, shooting from over 200 yards away. That set Stanford up for an eagle on 17, which Stanford secured to win Match 2.
Kayln Noh/Ethan Fang def. Yu Wen Lu/Ethan Gao, 3&2
Stanford fell behind in the third hole and was never able to recover, after Gao held steady with California, shooting pars on the first two holes. California birdied on the third hole and Stanford was never able to get back to even. Gao had an eagle on the sixth hole and added a birdie on the 14th, but 10 total birdies from the California pair were enough to sink Stanford in Match 3.
Adora Liu/Ethan Chung def. Megha Ganne/Dean Greyserman, 4&2
This match was one of the more back-and-forth ones the afternoon featured. Ganne and Greyserman held one-stroke leads after five and 10 holes holes, with six other holes being tied through 11. California found something late, however, winning holes 11-14 to turn what was a Stanford lead into a three-stroke advantage for the Golden Bears, eventually finishing it off on the 16th hole.
Olivia Lee/Costas Panay def. Kelly Xu/Jake Beber-Frankel, 3&2
Things were never out of reach for Xu and Beber-Frankel, who held even with California through the first three holes, and only trailed by one stroke after the front nine. The dagger came on holes 15-16, when California won both to clinch the point at 3&2, giving the Golden Bears its third team point of the afternoon, and needing just one more for a win.
Sadie Englemann/Sean-Karl Dobson def. Mika Jin/Tony Chen, 3&2
The Cardinal made sure the Golden Bears would not wrap it up that quickly. Englemann and Dobson never trailed on the afternoon, winning the first hole on a birdie from Englemann, and pulling ahead by winning the final three holes. Those were crucial for the Cardinal, as the match had been tied from holes 10-13. A par from Dobson on 14 and 16, a par from Englemann on 15 were enough to secure a third point for Stanford.
Rina Tatematsu/Sampson Zheng def. Rachel Heck/Karl Vilips, 2&1
It came down to the final match of the day, but despite a valiant comeback effort from the Cardinal, California secured the final team point. California led by as many as three strokes through just five holes, with Heck and Vilips struggling out of the gate. Those two began to find a bit of a rhythm late, however, as they combined for six birdies on the back nine to keep Stanford afloat. The highlight came on the 16th hole, a 120-yard, par-three where Stanford needed a near-miracle to stay alive. California led by three and birdied the hole, meaning the Cardinal needed a hole in one. Vilips delivered, dropping one in with wicked backspin to keep Stanford going for the 17th hole, where the match ended.
Both golf programs will be back in action on Oct. 9-11 at the Stephens Cup in Dallas, Texas. The women beat Wake Forest for the title and the men finished third in last year's installments.