April 19, 2015
Ben Schlottman's runner-up finish is the best in Auburn history by a Tiger freshman at the SEC Championship
SEA ISLAND, Ga. -- Ben Schlottman's 8-under runner-up finish at the SEC Championship was the best in history by a Tiger freshman as he led the sixth-ranked Auburn men's golf team to a tie for fourth at 7-under at Sea Island Golf Club on Sunday. Sophomore Ryan Benton tied for sixth at 4-under.
No. 9 LSU won the title with a 13-under 274-272-281--827, edging No. 4 Vanderbilt (276-274-280--830) and No. 8 South Carolina (275-275-280--830) by three shots. Auburn (275-276-282--833) tied for fourth with No. 21 Alabama (269-274-290--833), which led after both of the first two rounds.
Arkansas (279-275-280--834) was sixth followed by Georgia (282-277-283--842), Florida (282-276-284--842), Ole Miss (288-278-283--849), Texas A&M (286-282-287--855), Kentucky (284-284-288--856), Tennessee (284-292-284--860), Missouri (287-283-291--861) and Mississippi State (289-297-299--885).
Schlottman, who is ranked fourth in the SEC with a team-low 69.66 stroke average, had his fourth top five in six tournaments this season. The Advance, N.C., native opened with a 67 and 65 before a final round 70, finishing six shots behind medalist Matthew NeSmith of South Carolina, who was 14-under.
Benton recorded his best career finish in a team tournament as he tied for sixth at 4-under with a final round 71 after rounds of 69 and 66. Senior Dan Stringfellow tied for 27th at 2-over with a final round even par 70 while both sophomore All-SEC Matt Gilchrest (75-217) and junior Michael Johnson (71-217) tied for 47th.
"Ben and Ryan had exceptional tournaments and with Ben recording an Auburn freshman record finish, I couldn't be more proud," said Auburn head coach Nick Clinard. "Some of our guys just didn't have it this weekend, but they battled. That's golf and life in the SEC.
"We will learn from this tournament, and it will make us better for the regionals. We have almost a month to prepare, and we are looking forward to getting back to practice."
Auburn returns to action at the NCAA Regional May 14-16 at one of the following sites: Bremerton, Wash. (Gold Mountain Golf Club); Chapel Hill, N.C. (UNC Finley Golf Course); Lubbock, Texas (The Rawls Course); New Haven, Conn. (The Course at Yale); Noblesville, Ind. (The Sagamore Club); and San Diego, Calif. (The Farms Golf Club).
The Regionals will be announced live on The Golf Channel on Monday, May 4 during Morning Drive and will be streamed live on The Golf Channel website. The 2015 NCAA Championship is in Bradenton, Fla., at The Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Fla., May 29-June 3.
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