BELLEAIR, Fla. – No. 10 Auburn made the final day of stroke play its best at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida, on Sunday, firing a 2-under 278 to capture second place with a 54-hole score of 840 (E), three strokes behind stroke play winner South Carolina.
The Tigers will face 7-seed Georgia in the quarterfinals of the match play portion of the SEC Championship on Monday. Auburn has qualified for the match play portion of the event in every season that the SEC Championship has been held since the format was introduced in 2018 and has also finished stroke play in the top-5 at six consecutive SEC Championships.
"We were really trying to win the day today, play a solid round and have a chance to be the 1-seed," said Auburn head coach Melissa Luellen. "That obviously did not happen, but we were within one shot playing the last hole and South Carolina made a nice birdie when we made a bogey. So that was the difference but it was really tight. It was really good golf out there."
Freshman Anna Davis followed up two rounds of 1-under (69) from the first two days with her best round of the event on Sunday, a 68 (-2). Davis picked up two birdies on the par-5 seventh hole and the par-3 ninth hole to close out the front nine. The freshman then recorded back-to-back birdies on No. 12 and No. 13 before getting a bogey on the final hole.
Davis had the best finish of any freshman in the field at 4-under (206) and fourth place individually. The finish also marks her third top-10 of the spring. Davis' 12 birdies over the three rounds tied her for second-most in the field.
Redshirt freshman Casey Weidenfeld's round was off to a good start with a birdie on No. 4. Weidenfeld had good birdie looks with the putter later in the front nine, but was not able to convert them before the turn. She then recorded a couple of bogeys to begin the second nine, but was able to par out and shoot 1-over (71).
Her three-round total of 211 (+1) earned her a top-10 individual finish, her fourth of the season.
Sophomore Katie Cranston finished the event just one stroke behind Weidenfeld at 2-over (212) and in a tie for 11th place on the individual leaderboard. Cranston's third round was her best at Pelican Golf Club, as she carded a 68 (-2).
After a double bogey on No. 2 near the beginning of her round, Cranston bounced back with birdies on No. 5, No. 6 and No. 8 to make the turn at 1-under. The sophomore picked up one more birdie on the back nine to shoot 2-under. Cranston finished the stroke play portion of the event with 11 birdies on her card.
Back-2️⃣-back birdies for @KatieCranston1 on 5 and 6 🐤🐤#WarEagle pic.twitter.com/YBKsk7efwm
— Auburn Women's Golf (@AuburnWGolf) April 14, 2024
Senior Anna Foster provided a counting score on Sunday, a 1-over 71. Foster's round featured four birdies, with three of them occurring on a four-hole stretch on the back nine. Foster's 54-hole total of 218 (+8) placed her in a tie for 35th individually.
Although her third round score did not count for the team, Megan Schofill shot 72 (+2) on Sunday and finished inside the top-20 on the leaderboard. Schofill's three-day total of 214 (+4) earned her a tie for 20th place.
The Tigers and Bulldogs will face off in five matches with the team with the majority of match wins advancing to the semifinals.
"Match play is a crazy form of golf," continued Luellen. "You can never underestimate anyone just because they're seeded lower than us, it does not matter. Anyone can get hot, there's lots of birdies to be had out here and bogeys to be had as well. I think it'll be a really fun match play golf course and we're really looking forward to it."
The top eight teams from stroke play have advanced to the match play portion of the championship, which will be played on Monday and Tuesday. The quarterfinal and semifinal rounds will take place on Monday, while the final match to declare the SEC Champion will be played on Tuesday.
Live scoring of all three match play rounds will be available online at Golfstat.com and the GolfStat mobile app.
Auburn quarterfinal matchups:
Katie Cranston (AUB) vs. Natachanok Tunwannarux (UGA)-7:50 a.m. CT
Megan Schofill (AUB) vs. LoraLie Cowart (UGA)- 8:00 a.m. CT
Anna Davis (AUB) vs. Caterina Don (UGA)- 8:10 a.m. CT
Anna Foster (AUB) vs. Savannah De Bock (UGA)- 8:20 a.m. CT
Casey Weidenfeld (AUB) vs. Napat Lertsadwattana (UGA)- 8:30 a.m. CT
Auburn individuals:
| Placement | Player | Round 1 Score | Round 2 Score | Final Round Score | Total Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Anna Davis | 69 (-1) | 69 (-1) | 68 (-2) | 206 (-4) |
| 10 | Casey Weidenfeld | 68 (-2) | 72 (+2) | 71 (+1) | 211 (+1) |
| T11 | Katie Cranston | 70 (E) | 74 (+4) | 68 (-2) | 212 (+2) |
| T20 | Megan Schofill | 74 (+4) | 68 (-2) | 72 (+2) | 214 (+4) |
| T35 | Anna Foster | 72 (+2) | 75 (+5) | 71 (+1) | 218 (+8) |