Sept. 16, 2017
FRANKLIN, Tenn. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Sophomore Elena Hualde remained bogey-free through 36 holes and is one shot off the lead heading into the final round of the Mason Rudolph Championship.
Auburn, as a team, shot 284 (-4) in the second round Saturday and is 7-under for the tournament and in sixth place through two rounds at the Vanderbilt Legends Club North Course.
"Another solid round from Elena to put her in position to have a great tournament," Auburn head coach Melissa Luellen said. "Solid play from Michaela (Owen) and Kayley (Marschke) as well. The final three holes weren't kind to Melanie and Kelli, which left them with a bad taste in their mouths but hungry for a better day tomorrow.
"The hole locations will be 'Sunday pins' which will require patience since the first two rounds have been a birdiefest. If each player sticks to their game plan, I see another solid round for the Tigers."
Hualde is in a six-way tie for second place at 8-under par after a round of 69 (-3) Saturday to go with her 67 (-5) Friday. She turned in a clean scorecard for the second straight day, recording three birdies and no bogeys. Hualde's 36-hole total of 136 is tied for the second-best in Auburn history.
Michaela Owen and Kayley Marschke both posted rounds of 70 (-2) to give the Tigers three players under par. It was Owen's second straight round of 70, and she is tied for 12th place at 4-under; Marschke is tied for 26th at 1-under for the week. Both players had three birdies and one bogey on the day. Kelli Murphy and Melanie Talbott both posted rounds of 75 (+3).
Arkansas leads the team standings at 26-under, followed by Arizona State (-23) and Alabama (-20). Vanderbilt's Abbey Carlson is the individual leader at 9-under, followed by Hualde and five others at 8-under.
The Tigers will be paired with Northwestern and Vanderbilt for Sunday's final round, beginning play at 8:50 a.m. on the first tee. Live scoring is available at golfstat.com.
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Second-round results from the Mason Rudolph Championship, hosted by Vanderbilt at the Vanderbilt Legends Club ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" North Course (par 72, 6,335 yards) in Franklin, Tenn.:
Team Standings
1. Arkansas (-26)
2. Arizona State (-23)
3. Alabama (-20)
4. Vanderbilt (-18)
5. Northwestern (-11)
6. Auburn (-7)
7. South Carolina (-3)
8. Clemson (+1)
9. Virginia (+3)
10. North Carolina (+6)
11. Houston (+8)
12. Chattanooga (+9)
13. UCF (+15)
14. Middle Tennessee (+19)
15. Charlotte (+24)
Auburn Individuals
T2. Elena Hualde ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 67-69=136 (-8)
T13. Michaela Owen ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 70-70=140 (-4)
T26. Kayley Marschke ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 73-70=143 (-1)
59. Kelli Murphy ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 75-75=150 (+6)
T64. Melanie Talbott ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" 78-75=153 (+9)