SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Auburn made six birdies on the first four holes Saturday, and it set the tone for the rest of the day. The Tigers finished at 2-over (290) on the day and climbed into a tie for third place through two rounds at the NCAA Championship.
"They played really smart," Auburn head coach Melissa Luellen said. "The first step is getting the right information. I thought they did an exceptional job with that, and they got rewarded by having some birdie opportunities."
Megan Schofill, Anna Foster and Mychael O'Berry all shot under par in round two.
Schofill followed her 72 (E) from the opening round with a 2-under 70 on Saturday and is now tied for second individually at 2-under for the tournament. The sophomore started her day with a birdie on No. 10 and made three more along the way. She's now tied for fifth among all players in the field with eight total birdies.
"I'm really proud of Megan for coming back after a rough regional and doing the work and being so mentally strong to be able to turn that around within a week's time," Luellen said. "It's just really true to her mental toughness."
Foster and O'Berry each fired a 71 (-1) in round two. Foster had four birdies on the day, including two Par 5s (7, 18) while O'Berry made three birdies. Both players moved up into the top 20 and are tied for 19th at 3-over.
Kaleigh Telfer and Elina Sinz both shot 78 (+6) on Saturday to round out the Auburn group. Telfer is tied for 47th overall, and Sinz is in a tie for 109th.
Stanford remained in the lead at 5-over (581) while the rest of the top 10 includes Oregon (585), Auburn (586), UCLA (586), LSU (587), Texas A&M (589), Florida State (591), Arizona State (592), USC (592) and Georgia (594).
The 24-team field will be cut to 15 following Sunday's third round, and the remaining teams will play a fourth round of stroke play to determine the top eight for match play.
"We want to win," Luellen said. "We want to win the stroke play, and so our mindset is to just keep moving up that leaderboard because we're not at the top yet."
Auburn will tee off at 8:30 a.m. CT on Sunday and will be paired with the two leaders, Stanford and Oregon. Live scoring can be found on Golfstat.com.
Team Standings
1. Stanford – 581 (+5)
2. Oregon – 585 (+9)
T3. Auburn – 586 (+10)
T3. UCLA – 586 (+10)
5. LSU – 587 (+11)
6. Texas A&M – 589 (+13)
7. Florida State – 591 (+15)
T8. Arizona State – 592 (+16)
T8. USC – 592 (+16)
10. Georgia – 594 (+18)
T11. Purdue – 600 (+24)
T11. Texas – 600 (+24)
13. TCU – 601 (+25)
T14. San Jose State – 603 (+27)
T14. Virginia – 603 (+27)
T16. Mississippi State – 605 (+29)
T16. Wake Forest – 605 (+29)
18. South Carolina – 606 (+30)
19. Oklahoma State – 607 (+31)
T20. Michigan – 611 (+35)
T20. Baylor – 611 (+35)
22. Arkansas – 612 (+36)
T23. Vanderbilt – 614 (+38)
T23. Alabama – 614 (+38)
Auburn Individuals
T2. Megan Schofill – 72, 70 (-2)
T19. Anna Foster – 76, 71 (+3)
T19. Mychael O'Berry – 76, 71 (+3)
T47. Kaleigh Telfer – 72, 78 (+6)
T109. Elina Sinz – 79, 78 (+13)
Three go low as Tigers climb into third at NCAA Championship
