ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The UCF women's golf team received commitments from three talented players this week. Chinatsu Kobayashi, Kayla Kozak and Ana Laura Collado each signed national letters of intent to join the Knights for the fall 2017 season.
The Knights are currently ranked No. 20 in the nation heading into the spring portion of the 2016-17 campaign. As she looks to continue the teams success in 2017-18, head coach Emily Marron is excited for the potential each of the new players will bring.
Kobayashi, a native of Chiba, Japan, is currently attending the IMG academy in Bradenton. Since March, she has been a three-time medalist in junior golf events and finished top-five 12 times including eight runner-ups.
"Chinatsu is a powerful player and will make an immediate impact in our lineup," Marron said. "She has been playing in top level junior and amateur events and having success, and that experience will serve her well in college."
Kozak is originally from Oregon but moved to Bluffton, SC to attend the IJGA academy 2 years ago. She won 10 junior tournaments over the last three years, held the IJGT points lead in 2015-16 and was listed on the 2016-17 AJGA Honor Roll.
"Kayla has a contagious spirit about her and will be a tremendous team player," Marron said. "She has the length and power to be successful at the next level and I was drawn to that immediately when I saw her play."
Collado hails from Xalapa, Mexico and finished eighth overall as a member of the Mexican National Team that finished second in the 2016 Girls Junior Americas Cup. In 2015-16, she was the No. 2 ranked player in the Mexican Golf Federation among girls 14-18.
"Ana continues to get better and better. I think her best golf is ahead of her and she will only continue to grow in college golf. She is a very steady player whose game should transition very easily into the next level."