BERKELEY – Katherine Zhu is heading into her sophomore season as a champion.

Cal's All-Pac-12 golfer captured the 2019 California Women's Championship title on Wednesday, clinching the trophy with an eagle on the final hole to beat UCLA's Simar Singh by two strokes at the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa Golf Course.

Zhu, who set the program record for lowest scoring average by a freshman last season (73.58), is the first Cal golfer to win the California Women's Championship since Emily Childs in 2010.

"The win was a pretty big deal for me in the sense I hadn't won in awhile," Zhu said. "I've always been near the top but never got it done. Today, I played pretty well. It gives me confidence going into the fall."

Zhu began the day two shots off the lead heading into the final round and fell behind by three strokes entering the back nine. But a strong finish gave her a 67 for the day, and her 25-foot eagle on 18 topped it off. She finished at a 9-under par 207

"I didn't even know I had won until we were hugging at the end and (Singh) congratulated me," Zhu said. "I wasn't keeping track of her score. At first, I was confused. She had been playing really well and I wasn't really expecting to win."

Zhu enjoyed one of the greatest freshman seasons in program history in 2018, recording five top-10 finishes and registering a streak of nine straight top-25 finishes.

"She is one of the best amateurs in California," Cal head coach Nancy McDaniel said. "It's pretty cool for us heading into the season to have her win something. She needed that. It's a definite boost for her."

Freshman Kristine Tran placed 12^th at +6 while incoming transfer Kaylee Jeon was tied for 20^th at +12.

Meanwhile, at the AJGA Swinging Skirts Invitational at Stanford, freshman Tzu-Yi Chang is at +4 heading into the final round, six shots off the pace.

The Bears begin the 2019-20 season Sept. 15-17 at the Cougar Cup at Washington State.