April 7, 2017
ATHENS, Ga. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" The Auburn women's golf team earned a tie for fifth place Friday in the stroke-play qualifying portion of the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic, advancing to the championship bracket for the weekend's match play at the UGA Golf Course.
The Tigers, ranked No. 39 by Golfweek and No. 40 by Golfstat this week, shot a team score of 310 (+22), which placed them in a three-way tie with No. 2/10 Southern Cal and No. 19 Oklahoma State. It also advanced Auburn to the "Red" bracket for the first time since 2014, where eight teams will compete in match play for the tournament championship over the weekend.
Sophomore Mai Dechathipat and junior Michaela Owen had the top scores for Auburn with rounds of 77 (+5), earning them a tie for 18th place individually. Freshmen Kayley Marschke and Elena Hualde were one shot back with a 78 (+6), tied for 24th, and junior Kelli Murphy carded a 79 (+7) to tie for 27th. Murphy's score proved to be the tiebreaker that earned Auburn the No. 5 seed in match play. Auburn led the field with 55 pars on the day and was the second-best team in the field on the par-5 holes at 1-over.
Georgia earned the top seed for match play with a 297 (+9) on its home course, six shots ahead of Alabama and Denver at 303 (+15). Only three players finished under par on the day with Georgia's Jillian Hollis earning medalist honors with a 67 (-5).
Auburn will play two matches Saturday. The Tigers will face fourth-seeded Arkansas beginning at 7 a.m. CT on the 10th tee. Depending on the outcome, Auburn will then play either Georgia or Daytona State in either a semifinal or consolation match beginning at noon. Live scoring for all matches is available at birdiefire.com.
Stroke-play qualifying results at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic, hosted by Georgia at the UGA Golf Course (par 72, 6,300 yards) in Athens, Ga.:
Team Standings ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Stroke Play Qualifying
1. Georgia ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 297 (+9)
T2. Denver ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 303 (+15)
T2. Alabama ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 303 (+15)
4. Arkansas ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 304 (+16)
T5. Auburn ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 310 (+22)
T5. Southern Cal ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 310 (+22)
T5. Oklahoma State ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 310 (+22)
8. Daytona State ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 311 (+23)
9. Purdue ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 312 (+24)
10. South Carolina ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 313 (+25)
11. Old Dominion ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 321 (+33)
12. Troy ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 328 (+40)
Auburn Individuals
T18. Mai Dechathipat ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 77 (+5)
T18. Michaela Owen ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 77 (+5)
T24. Kayley Marschke ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 78 (+6)
T24. Elena Hualde ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 78 (+6)
T27. Kelli Murphy ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 79 (+7)