HONOLULU – The University of Hawai'i women's golf team opens the Julie Brooks era by competing in the Coeur d'Alene Collegiate Invitational, Sunday, Sept. 18 through Tuesday, Sept. 20 in Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course.
 
Brooks begins her first season as head coach of the Rainbow Wahine after spending 16 seasons at UC Irvine, where she won two conference titles, made two NCAA Championship appearances and four NCAA Regionals, and was a three-time Big West Coach of the Year.

"The team and I are excited to get the season started at Couer d' Alene," Brooks said. "The girls have been working hard on their games and they are ready to compete."
 
She inherits a program that returns six members from last year's co-Big West Championship squad. The Rainbow Wahine are the defending Coeur d'Alene Invitational champions, which was one of four team titles during the 2021-22 campaign. UH edged out Sacramento State by one stroke and also captured medalist honors as Momo Sugiyama took home the individual title.
 
Gonzaga is the host of the tournament which features a 19-team field this year – Cal State Fullerton, Cincinnati, Florida International, Georgetown, Gonzaga, Grand Canyon, UH, Long Beach State, Nevada, Northern Arizona, Northern Illinois, Oral Roberts, Sacramento State, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Seattle, Southern Utah, UC Riverside, and Wyoming
 
Hawai'i competed in the first two Coeur d'Alene Collegiate Invitational tournaments finishing in a tie for 15^th in 2017 and 18^th in 2018 before finally breaking through last season with a then-program-best final round of 284 to win the tournament.
 
This year's line-up includes Mayumi Umezu, Hyeonji Kang, Monica Johnson, Wendy Song, and Ting-Yu Liu. Song, a freshman from Hsinchu, Taiwan, is the only newcomer on the squad. Kang and Liu competed in last year's tournament finishing in a tie for 10^th (218) and tie for 58^th (230), respectively.
 
Participants will play 18 holes each day on the par-71 course, which measures 6,085 yards.
 
Tournament #1
What: Coeur d'Alene Collegiate Invitational
Dates: Sunday, Sept. 18 through Tuesday, Sept. 20
Course: Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course
Location: Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
Format: Three-days; 54 holes (18 each day); 5-count-4
Host: Gonzaga
Field (19 teams): Cal State Fullerton, Cincinnati, Florida International, Georgetown, Gonzaga, Grand Canyon, Hawai'i, Long Beach State, Nevada, Northern Arizona, Northern Illinois, Oral Roberts, Sacramento State, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Seattle, Southern Utah, UC Riverside, and Wyoming
Live Scoring: www.golfstat.com