RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. (March 29, 2007) - Only two weeks removed from her first win on the LPGA Tour, Port Chester, N.Y., native Meaghan Francella now faces the first major championship of her career. She will be joined by local favorites Diana D’Alessio of Dover, N.J., and Heather Daly-Donofrio, formerly of Bridgeport, Conn., when the Kraft Nabisco Championship kicks off today at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif. All three players are looking for their first major championship and a spot in the season-ending ADT Championship.

Francella, who earned her spot on Tour by virtue of a fifth-place finish on the Duramed Futures Tour’s money list, immediately made an impact in her rookie season on Tour. She defeated Annika Sorenstam in a playoff to win the MasterCard Classic on March 11, securing a spot in the Kraft Nabisco Championship. She will be paired with Julieta Granada, who as a rookie in 2006 captured the ADT Championship as her first victory.

Diana D’Alessio will look to continue the momentum she had in 2006 when she secured four top-10’s, including a second place finish at the Honda LPGA Thailand. The former WMGA Player of the Year capped off an impressive 2006 with a t-9th at the ADT Championship. D’Alessio’s best finish in a major was 4th at the 2000 duMaurier Classic.

Heather Daly-Donofrio, playing in her 25th major championship, has had some success at the Kraft Nabisco in recent years. She has made the cut in four of the past five years, including a t-26 finish in 2001. Daly-Donofrio, a two-time winner on Tour, crossed the $1 million mark in career earnings in 2006.

The Kraft Nabisco Championship is scheduled to begin on Thursday, March 30. Live scoring and local player updates are available on www.mgagolf.org. For more information please contact Bob Nielsen at bnielsen@mgagolf.org or (914) 347-4653.