Feb. 24, 2017
| 2016-17 Auburn Women's Golf - Auburn-Tennessee Challenge | |
| Dates | Sunday, Feb. 26 |
| Location | Auburn University Club | Auburn, Ala. |
| Format | 36-hole medal play; four individual scores count toward team total |
| Field | Auburn, Tennessee |
| Online | Live Scoring | Twitter: @AuburnWGolf | Auburn Season Stats |
| Tee Times | Round 1: 7:30 a.m., No. 1 tee (twosomes) Round 2: 11:30 a.m., No. 1 tee (foursomes) |
| Auburn's Lineup | |
| Elena Hualde Freshman Pamplona, Spain (1) | Michaela Owen Junior Suwanee, Ga. (2) | Melanie Talbott Sophomore Woodstock, Ga. (3) | Kelli Murphy Junior Elgin, S.C. (4) | Kayley Marschke Freshman Suwanee, Ga. (5) |
| Mai Dechathipat Sophomore Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla. (Individual) |
AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" The Auburn women's golf team will play its first regular-season home event in more than eight years Sunday as the Tigers welcome SEC rival Tennessee for the Auburn-Tennessee Challenge.
The teams will play 36 holes of stroke play at the Auburn University Club, which will be set up at par 72, 6,283 yards. Tee times for the first round will begin at 7:30 a.m., playing in twosomes, and the second round is slated for an 11:30 a.m. start in foursomes. Sunday's event is free and open to the public.
"We get 24 days of competition in a calendar year," Auburn head coach Melissa Luellen said. "Tennessee had an extra day, we had an extra day. (Tennessee coach) Judi Pavon said they would like to come down and play in some warmer weather, so they're going to bring all 11 kids on their roster. We'll have six active on our roster."
Auburn's starting lineup ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" five players to count the top four scores for a team total ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" will consist of freshmen Elena Hualde and Kayley Marschke, sophomore Melanie Talbott and juniors Michaela Owen and Kelli Murphy. Sophomore Mai Dechathipat will play as an individual.
Owen and Hualde have been Auburn's top two competitors this season. Hualde leads the Tigers with a 72.24 scoring average and has three top-10 finishes, including a tie for seventh at 6-under-par in the UCF Challenge earlier this month. Owen has top-20 finishes in five of six events this year and owns a 72.53 average.
Senior Clara Baena will miss the event after suffering an injury in the Tigers' first tournament of the season.
"Unfortunately, she's been plagued by injuries," Luellen said. "She went after a ball in a divot in Orlando about three weeks ago and tweaked her elbow. I think she's going to be fine, but we are holding her out of the Tennessee match, which is kind of a bummer since it's her only chance in four years to compete at home. But she knows this is the right thing to do, getting a little rest to help it so she can be strong for the last part of the season."
Live scoring for Sunday's event is available at birdiefire.com. Fans can also follow @AuburnWGolf on Twitter for updates throughout the day.