Kate Villegas, UC Riverside  Women's Golfer of the Month (September)  Junior • Arcadia, Calif.

• UC Riverside’s Kate Villegas turned in a phenomenal September resume to earn Big West Golfer of the Month. The award is a first for a Highlander women’s golfer since Sept. 2018 when current assistant coach Jakeishya Le collected honors. 

• The junior placed second at the season-opening Hobble Creek Fall Classic to start the 2022-23 campaign, firing a 75-73-69—217 to claim runner-up status, trailing only teammate Tiffany Le on the leaderboard. Villegas started day two of the event tied for eighth before making the leap with a final-round 69, one of only three rounds registered in the 60s in the 110-player field. 

• Five days after the second-place showing, Villegas took to the course at the Coeur d’Alene Collegiate and tied for individual medalist honors after shooting 69-70-70—209. The three-round tally is tied for the lowest in UC Riverside history as Villegas tied on the top line of the leaderboard with Sacramento State’s Jennifer Koga.  

• Dating back to the 2021-22 season finale where Villegas was Big West Championship runner-up, the Arcadia, Calif., native has now compiled three-consecutive top-two individual finishes. 

Also Nominated: Iris Han (CSU Bakersfield); Hyeonji Kang (Hawai’i); Jensen Jalufka (Cal Poly); Janea Leovao (Long Beach State); Megan Yang (UC Irvine); Davina Xanh (Cal State Fullerton)

Historical Big West Women's Golf Monthly Winners