ELMSFORD, N.Y. (August 11, 2011) - The dream is over for Nicole Morales, Annie Park and Cindy Ha, who all fell in their Round of 16 matches at the 2011 U.S. Women's Amateur at Rhode Island Country Club.

Morales, 15, of South Salem, N.Y., took a 1-up lead in her match against Brooke Pancake of Chattanooga, Tenn., but then encountered a rough stretch in which she bogeyed two out of four holes to fall into a deficit from which she wasn't able to pull out of. Earlier in the day, Morales earned a 3 & 1 victory against Christine Wong of Canada and finished her match on the 17th hole with a 3 & 1 victory. [For more on Morales, click here]

Park, of Levittown, N.Y., suffered a tough loss after leading Erynne Lee of Silverdale, Wash., for most of their Round of 16 match. Lee went on a spree of four birdies in the last eight holes to take her own lead, and after Park birdied #17 to square the match, the two halved the 18th and headed to extra holes. Park then bogeyed the 19th hole to lose, 1-up.

Joining Park and Morales in the Round of 16 was Cinda Ha of Demarest, N.J., who also held a lead but ran into an opponent who went on a birdie barrage. Ha fell to Danielle Kang of Westlake Village, Calif., who birdied the last three holes of their match to score a 2 & 1 victory.

Simply qualifying for the U.S. Women's Amateur Championship is an impressive feat, and the fact that these three competitors made it through two round of match play format is a testament to their skills, work ethic and access to outstanding facilities and training offered in the Met Area.

For scoring from the U.S. Women's Amateur, click here.

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ELMSFORD, N.Y. (August 11, 2011) - Nicole Morales, Annie Park and Cindy Ha have advanced to the Round of 32 at the 2011 U.S. Women's Amateur at Rhode Island Country Club.

15-year-old Morales had perhaps the days most exciting match, rallying from 2 down with two to play in her first-round match against Emma De Groot of Australia. The match started off steadily, remaining all square through four holes. De Groot then jumped out to a 2-up lead that held until the par-4 16th, where Morales went on an incredible three-hole birdie streak and ultimately closed the match on the par-4 first [their 19th hole] with a par.

Fellow Met Area native Annie Park continued her impressive showing at this year's championship, enduring a grueling match that went 24 holes against Calle Nielson of Nashville, Tenn. After clutch birdies on the par-3 17th and par-4 18th to square the match, Park matched Nielson shot for shot and won on the par-4 6th with a par.

In a matchup between two local players, Cindy Ha defeated Marina Alex, 1 up, advancing to the round of 32.

In the round of 32, Nicole Morales faces Christine Wong of Canada. Annie Park is up against Amy Meier of Rochester Hills Michigan, and Cindy Ha faces Jaye Marie Green of Boca Raton, Florida.

Follow all the action with live scoring for each group by clicking here.

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ELMSFORD, N.Y. (August 10, 2011) – After two rounds of stroke play qualifying at the 2011 U.S. Women's Amateur at Rhode Island Country Club in Barrington, R.I., five of the nine Met Area women who earned a spot in the championship have advanced to match play.

The round of 64, which starts today on the 6,399, par-71 layout, is split into an upper and lower bracket. The first match involving local players begins at 9:30 a.m., when 2010 WMGA/MGA Public Links champion Nicole Morales of South Salem, N.Y. takes on Emma De Groot of Australia. Morales shot rounds of 72-70 for a total of 142 in stroke play qualifying.

Annie Park of Levittown, N.Y. is in the upper bracket with Morales, and takes on Calle Nielson of Nashville, Tenn. Park qualified with rounds of 71-70 for a total of 141, making her the low Met Area qualifier.

In a battle of two standout players from northern New Jersey, Marina Alex (71-72-143) of Wayne, N.J. faces Cindy Ha (73-73-146) of Demarest, N.J. Kelly Shon of Port Washington, N.Y. is the final Met Area player in match play, and the only one placed in the lower bracket. Shon shot 72-74 for a total of 146 and faces Tiffany Lua of Rowland Heights, Ca.

Karen Chung, Sherry Herman, Kuriko Tsukiyama and Taylor Totland did not advance to match play.

Follow all the action from today's matches with live scoring on the U.S. Women's Amateur website by clicking here.

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ELMSFORD, N.Y. (August 8, 2011) – The United States Women’s Amateur Championship kicked off on Monday, August 8, at Rhode Island Country Club in Barrington, R.I., where nine of the best Met Area women are amongst the international field with the hopes of being one of the top 64 scorers who will advance through two days of stroke play qualifying and into match play.

The Met Area is highlighted by several top young competitors, such as 15-year-old Nicole Morales of South Salem, N.Y. Morales will be a sophomore at John Jay High School in Brewster, N.Y., and is a leading player on the varsity boys’ team. She won the 2010 WMGA/MGA Public Links Championship at Hudson Hills Golf Course in Ossining, N.Y.,  advanced to match play at last month's U.S. Girls' Junior Championship, and has won the Met PGA Junior Girls Match Play championship.

Among the players accompanying Morales is Marina Alex of Wayne, N.J. Alex is a senior at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., and was named Golfer of the Year by the Bergen Record in both her junior and senior years in high school. Alex was named a National Golf Coaches Association first team All-American and SEC Player of the Year.

Also representing the Met Area in Rhode Island is Karen Chung of Livingston, N.J., who has won the three AJGA events, including the Girls Championship in ’09 and ’10, and last month advanced to the quarterfinals at the U.S. Girls' Junior Championship. Annie Park of Levittown, N.Y. also played in the U.S. Girls Junior, eventually losing in the Round of 32, while Cindy Ha of Demarest, N.J., played in the championship but did not advance to match play.

Sherry Herman of Belmar, N.J., is the senior member of the Met Area golfers in the field this week. She won the 2009 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur Championship at the Homestead in Hot Springs, Va., and has won the WMGA Match Play Championship and played on several WMGA/MGA teams in the biennial French-American Challenge Matches. Another member of the WMGA/MGA French-American team from 2010 is Kuriko Tsukiyama of West New York, N.J., who beat Herman in the finals of last year’s New Jersey’s Woman Amateur Championship. Taylor Totland of Tinton Falls, N.J. has had numerous successes playing for Red Bank Catholic High School, where she is a rising junior. She is undefeated in two years running in the Shore Conference, and has won back-to-back Monmouth County and Shore Conference Titles. Kelly Shon of Port Washington, N.Y., will be a sophomore in the fall at Princeton University. This past year, Shon was first-team All-Ivy and finished in the top 10 in seven of the events.

For more information and full coverage from this week's U.S. Women's Amateur, click here.