May 3, 2018
AUBURN, Ala. ââ'¬" Auburn senior Kelli Murphy and freshman Kaleigh Telfer were honored by the Southeastern Conference as the league announced its annual women's golf awards Thursday.
Murphy was named to the All-SEC Second Team and also to the SEC Community Service Team. Telfer earned a selection to the SEC All-Freshman Team.
Murphy, who came to Auburn from Elgin, S.C., has been one of Auburn's steadiest players throughout her career and during her senior year. She enters the postseason with a season scoring average of 73.33, the best of her career, which currently ranks 10th all-time at Auburn for a single season. She has recorded a team-best 12 rounds at even par or better this season and has two top-10 finishes and four top-20 showings this year. For her career, Murphy has appeared in every team event over her four years at Auburn and has a 74.68 career scoring average, eighth-best in Auburn history.
Off the course, Murphy earned her third straight nod for the SEC Community Service Team. Murphy has been part of Auburn's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee all four years and coordinated the golf team's participation in community service events. She led women's golf to a second-place finish among Auburn teams in the Stamp Out Hunger food drive in Lee County. She also assisted in stuffing backpacks for the Jason Dufner Foundation, and she coordinated the "GIVE HOPE" philanthropy for Auburn's home tournament, the Evans Derby Experience. She has also been named a WGCA All-America Scholar and to the SEC Academic Honor Roll three straight years.
Telfer, a native of South Africa, appeared in seven tournaments as a freshman, putting together a 73.58 scoring average over 19 rounds. She saved the best for last, however, putting together her best tournament at the SEC Championship, where she tied for ninth place and helped lead Auburn into the match play round. Telfer has six rounds at even par or better, and her best round was a 2-under 70 at the UCF Challenge in February.
Murphy's All-SEC selection marks the 62nd such honor for an Auburn women's golfer and the first since 2014. Telfer is the ninth Auburn rookie named to the SEC All-Freshman Team and fourth in the last four seasons.
Postseason play gets underway for the 19th-ranked Tigers next week at the NCAA Austin Regional in Austin, Texas. The 54-hole event runs Monday-Wednesday at the University of Texas Golf Club; the top six finishers in the 18-team field advance to the NCAA Championship.