Fátima Fernández Cano Opens NCAA Regional Play Thursday

TROY, Alabama – Troy University junior Fátima Fernández Cano opens play Thursday as an individual at the NCAA East Regional at the Shoal Creek Golf Course in Birmingham, Ala. This will be Cano's third straight Regional appearance as Troy participated as a team the last two years after winning back-to-back Sun Belt Championships.

The NCAA East Regional features 18 teams and six individuals playing 54 holes over three days at the 6,470-yard, par-72 course. The top six teams from each of the four NCAA Regional sites will advance to the NCAA Championship in Eugene, Ore., while the top three individuals at each site not on a qualifying team will also advance to the NCAA Championship.

"This is a good golf course for her," Troy head coach Bart Barnes said. "It is a course that has some very difficult par 4s and will require some pretty good iron play, both of which are strengths of hers. We are going to have to play the par 5s better and get some birdies and then play the par 3s clean.

"She got her bad week behind her, if you can call finishing sixth at the Sun Belt Championship a bad week," Barnes said. "She has played well as an individual during summer events in the past, so we'll see if that relaxes her a little this week."

Cano enters the NCAA East Regional as a the second-seeded individual in the Regional behind only Kansas' Yupaporn Kawinpakorn. Cano ranks fifth nationally with a 4.02 average on par-4 holes, while ranking 18^th with a 72.15 stroke average and +0.35 score versus par.

A native of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, Cano is currently slotted 24^th in the latest World Amateur Golf rankings, while checking in 52^nd in the Golfweek national collegiate rankings. She has won a remarkable five tournaments this season and has posted an average finish of 5.2 in Troy's nine events.

Cano has played on another level during the spring season with three of her five wins and a 71.89 stroke average over six events and 18 rounds. For the entire season, Cano has played 10 of her 26 rounds under par with five rounds in the 60s. A big reason for her five wins is Cano's ability to close out tournaments, as she is one of the best closers in the country with a 71.00 stroke average in final rounds this season.

The six individuals at the NCAA East Regional will all tee off at 8:15 a.m. each morning with three going off on No. 1 and three going off on No. 10. Cano, Kawinpakorn and Chattanooga's Emily McLennan will open on the front nine Thursday morning.

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Fátima Fernández Cano Opens NCAA Regional Play Thursday

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