ATHENS, Ga. — The University of Georgia women’s golf program has signed transfers Maria Garcia and Sydney Givens ahead of the 2025-26 season, head coach Erika Brennan announced on Wednesday.
Garcia arrives in Athens following one season at the University of New Mexico, where she led the Lobos with two top-five and three top-10 tournament finishes during her freshman campaign. Her 74.04 stroke average ranked second on the team and first among golfers who played five or more tournaments. The Queretaro, Mexico, native also led the team in par-or-better rounds (10) while carding the team’s low-18 (67) and low-54 (207) scores during the 2024-25 season.
“Maria is so mature and loves this game and the pursuit of excellence,” Brennan said. “She’s kind and has that team-first mentality that’s so important. Her golf is so steady and consistent. She had a strong start to her collegiate year, and she will be an impact player from the very beginning.”
Givens becomes the second transfer to join the Bulldogs from the University of Colorado along with graduate transfer Maria Eidhagen Harrouch, who signed with Georgia in April. During her freshman season, Givens led the Buffaloes in stroke average (73.59) with the team’s low-18 (67) and low-54 (211) scores during the 2024-25 campaign. She counted 28 of her 30 team rounds to the Buffaloes’ team score this season while posting one top-five and two top-10 finishes. Givens shared the team lead with four rounds in the 60s and 11 par-or-better rounds.
“We are thrilled Sydney is a Dawg,” Brennan said. “She is so awesomely authentic and plays golf so freely. It’s easy to see how much she loves the game and the grind of constantly leveling up. Coming off a strong freshman season, we know Sydney will make an immediate impact here in Athens.”
Georgia has a rich history in women’s golf, sporting four national championships (one team and three individual) and a league-leading 19 SEC Championships (11 team and eight individual). The Bulldogs captured the 2001 NCAA Championship, one of 21 top-10 and 29 top-20 finishes at the national championships over the last 46 years. In addition to national champion medalists Terri Moody (1981), Cindy Schreyer (1984) and Vicki Goetze (1992), 35 Georgia golfers have combined to win 64 All-America certificates.