USC beats Stanford, wins East Lake Cup

Walk-on Divya Manthena scored the winning point and USC captured the East Lake Cup with a 3-2 victory over Pacific 12 Conference rival Stanford at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, home of the PGA Tour’s Tour Championship.

The Trojans claimed their second straight victory and won the East Lake Cup for the second time in three years to wrap of the Fall Season.

“I knew we were really the underdogs coming in,” Coach Andrea Gaston of USC said. “We stepped up at the right moment. I think this was truly a team effort over the past couple days.

“It means a lot to bring the Cup home. It is special to be here. You know, all we can do is continue to shoot for the stars and try to come back again next year. I’m so proud of all of them.”

Stanford held a 2-0 lead before USC rallied to win the last three matches.

Manthena, a sophomore from Moorpark who transferred to USC from Siena College, defeated Madie Chou, 4 and 2, after Robynn Ree defeated Shannon Aubert, 1 up, and Muni He upset Andrea Lee, 3 and 2.

Stanford took an early lead when Albane Valenzuela downed Alyaa Abdulghany, 4 and 2, and Emily Wang took out Allisen Corpuz, 5 and 4.

“This is what I’ve been preparing my whole life for, so I definitely knew that it would come down to this just with Stanford being such a strong team,” Manthena said. “I knew every match was going to count. I was definitely nervous on that last putt, but we’ve been preparing well, so I’m happy I was in that position and that I could get it done.

“I love my teammates and I love my coaches and I wouldn’t be here without them. I’m so happy I could come through for them.”

Vanderbilt claimed the men’s title with a 4-1 victory over Illinois.

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