CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. – The Women’s Golf Coaches Association has announced that Kiira Riihijarvi of the University of Tampa and Pilar Echeverria of the University of Indianapolis have been named the 2020 Division II PING WGCA Co-Players of the Year.

Kiira Riihijarvi acceptance video: https://vimeo.com/411020434

Pilar Echeverria acceptance video: https://vimeo.com/411019088

Recognized annually as the top honor in women’s collegiate golf, the PING WGCA Player of the Year Award is awarded to the best player in Division I, II III and NAIA women’s golf. The award was first given in 1987 and the names of recipients read as a who’s who of the best of the ladies’ game. The recipient is selected by a prestigious collection of women’s collegiate golf coaches who follow criteria that have been established to identify the finest player for the past year. These criteria include:

•          Head to head competition

•          Comparison with common opponents

•          Scoring average

•          Place finishes in regular-season events and tournament wins

•          Strength of schedule

Kiira Riihijarvi, University of Tampa

A native of Oulu Finland, Riihijarvi placed first in four of six tournaments during the 2019-20 campaign, including the first three of the season. She posted a 70.50 scoring average, which ranks first in the University of Tampa record books, and finished below par in four tournaments, including a season-low three-round score of 208 (-8) at the Lady Moc Classic.

Pilar Echeverria, University of Indianapolis

Echeverria, from Guatemala City, Guatemala, becomes the first back-to-back Division II PING WGCA Division II Player of the Year since 2015. She finished in either first or second place in five of six tournaments during the 2019-20 season, including three tournament wins. She posted a scoring average of 71.6, the best single-season scoring average in program history.

For further information regarding these awards including selection criteria, please visit www.wgcagolf.com.

About the Women’s Golf Coaches Association

The Women’s Golf Coaches Association, founded in 1983, is a non-profit organization representing women’s collegiate golf coaches. The WGCA was formed to encourage the playing of college golf for women in correlation with a general objective of education and in accordance with the highest tradition of intercollegiate competition. Today, the WGCA represents over 600 coaches throughout the U.S. and is dedicated to educating, promoting and recognizing both its members and the student-athletes they represent.