After a week spent balancing finals and practice, the Bruins are set to conclude their regular season in Phoenix.

Directly following the end of winter quarter, No. 25 UCLA women’s golf will round out its year at the PING/ASU Invitational, the team’s final event before the Big Ten Championship. The tournament, hosted by Arizona State, will be played from Friday to Sunday at Papago Golf Course.

“It’s been slightly difficult because of finals week, so part of that was just managing their energy and then stress levels too,” said coach Alicia Um Holmes. “We really didn’t see them at all last week.”

Finals week for UCLA students took place from March 17 to 21, with exams scattered across the five-day stretch.

Because of a lack of practice ahead of the invitational, Um Holmes said her lineup remained uncertain the day before the team left for Arizona. She added that she planned to bring some of her longer-hitting drivers to take advantage of some of the course’s long par-4s.

Um Holmes also said the team, following its loss to USC in March 17’s Battle for the Bell, has been focused on its short game, putting and ball striking. Putting may be especially important in Arizona, as the hot, dry conditions could make the greens roll fast.

Italian freshman Francesca Fiorellini, who was the only Bruin to win her match at the Battle for the Bell and led the team at the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate two weeks prior, said she’s adjusted to collegiate play and the American course style.

“I don’t know the course; they told me it’s a desert course,” Fiorellini said. “It should be pretty wide. I will focus on the greens and chipping and my approach shots.”

Fiorellini added that she had to balance her school schedule with preparing for the event.

“It was pretty hard, because I had also a final yesterday (Tuesday), on spring break week, because it was a makeup final. I had to make it up for Monday that we were playing the Battle for the Bell,” Fiorellini said.

Among the event’s 13 competitors, only UCLA and No. 12 Northwestern are on the quarter system, potentially hampering the two teams’ pre-tournament practice. The field also features five southwestern teams, including hosts No. 9 Arizona State, while No. 21 Kansas will appear as the only other ranked team.

With the conference tournament following three weeks after the upcoming event, Fiorellini said the PING/ASU Invitational is an opportunity for the Bruins to show the fruits of the season’s labor.

“This is a great tournament and a great challenge for our team,” Fiorellini said. “We prepared a lot; we practiced a lot. We just really put a lot of hard work in the whole team.”

Um Holmes, who is currently in her second year as the Bruins’ head coach and 19th with the program, also said she was looking for success in the Grand Canyon State.

“I’m hoping that all their hard work comes together and they’re able to perform the way they want,” Um Holmes said. “I’m really hoping that a few of them have a breakthrough week and shoot the scores that I know they can shoot, and that way they can bring some confidence moving into the postseason.”