No. 8 Auburn women’s golf defeats No. 18 Ole Miss, No. 3 Florida to reach SEC Championship finals

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No. 8 Auburn women’s golf defeats No. 18 Ole Miss, No. 3 Florida to reach SEC Championship finalsNo. 8 Auburn women’s golf defeats No. 18 Ole Miss, No. 3 Florida to reach SEC Championship finals
Todd Drexler

BELLEAIR, Fla. – No. 8 Auburn women’s golf has reached the championship match of the SEC Women’s Golf Championship at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida. The Tigers qualified for match play as the No. 4 seed after Sunday’s final round of stroke play, then defeated No. 18 Ole Miss 5-0 in the quarterfinals and downed No. 3 Florida 3-2 in the semifinals Monday.

“Today was a long but exciting day,” Auburn head coach Melissa Luellen said. “Because of the fight of every single member of the team, we came out victorious and have a chance to win an SEC Championship tomorrow.

“Pelican Golf Club is such a fun and challenging course to play, and we are looking forward to the matchup against Tennessee.”

In Monday morning’s quarterfinal against the Rebels that started on No. 10, Auburn’s Anna Davis started fast against Ole Miss’ Kajsalotta Svarvar, winning each of the first three holes. Davis added wins on Nos. 17 and 18 to make the turn with a 5-up lead. Svarvar responded with a couple of wins on the back nine, but Davis ultimately claimed a 3&2 victory.

Auburn’s Carys Worby took advantage of two straight bogeys by Ole Miss’ Matilda Björkman to build a 2-up lead. Björkman tied the match through five holes, but Worby won No. 15 with a birdie. The Auburn redshirt senior added a couple more holes to build a 3-up lead with four to play. Björkman won No. 6, but Worby responded with a birdie on No. 7 to secure a 3&2 win.

Katie Cranston and Filippa Sundquist went back and forth on the opening nine, with Cranston taking a 1-up lead through eight holes. Cranston then won Nos. 2 and 3 to build a 3-up advantage. Sundquist narrowed the lead to 2 up through 13 holes, but Cranston won No. 6 with a birdie to extend the lead and closed out the match 3&2.

Charlotte Cantonis and Molly Brown Davidson were leading their respective matches when the team victory was clinched, resulting in a 5-0 score.

The win advanced the Tigers to the semifinals against Florida on Monday afternoon.

Auburn’s Charlotte Cantonis and Florida’s Paula Francisco were tied through five holes before Cantonis won Nos. 6, 7, 9 and 10 to jump out to a 4-up lead. The Auburn freshman went on to secure a 4&3 victory for the Tigers’ first point of the semifinal.

Florida’s Addison Klonowski won the opening hole over Auburn’s Katie Cranston, but Cranston responded with a couple of hole wins to take a 1-up lead through four holes. After Klonowski tied the match on No. 5, Cranston won back-to-back holes to take a 2-up advantage. Cranston later built a 3-up lead through 13 holes and went on to win 2&1.

After Florida claimed two match victories, the team result was decided in a tight match between Auburn’s Molly Brown Davidson and Florida’s Siuue Wu. The two players halved each of the first four holes before Davidson won Nos. 5 and 7 to take a 2-up lead. Wu responded with wins on Nos. 9 and 11 to tie the match. A birdie on No. 14 gave Wu a 1-up lead before Davidson won the next hole to square the match. With the match all square through 17 holes, the Auburn sophomore won No. 18 to secure a 1-up victory and clinch Auburn’s spot in the final.

Auburn will face No. 17 Tennessee in Tuesday’s championship match. The Volunteers advanced with wins over Oklahoma in the quarterfinals and No. 4 Texas A&M in the semifinals. The Tigers have reached the championship match for the first time since winning the title in 2021.

Auburn will begin the match at 9 a.m. CT. Tuesday’s championship match will be televised on SEC Network, and live scoring will be available at scoreboard.clippd.com.

Auburn has a rich history at the SEC Championship with 10 titles. Since the match-play format was introduced in 2018, the Tigers have won the event once, claiming the 2021 title.

 

#8 Auburn 5, #18 Ole Miss 0

  1. Anna Davis (AUB) def. Kajsalotta Svarvar (MISS) 3&2
  2. Carys Worby (AUB) def. Matilda Björkman (MISS) 3&2
  3. Katie Cranston (AUB) def. Filippa Sunquist (MISS) 3&2
  4. Charlotte Cantonis (AUB) def. Mary Miller (MISS) 1UP
  5. Molly Brown Davidson (AUB) def. Sophie Linder (MISS) 1UP

 

#8 Auburn 3, #3 Florida 2

  1. Megan Propeck (FLA) def. Anna Davis (AUB) 2&1
  2. Katelyn Huber (FLA) def. Carys Worby (AUB) 5&3
  3. Katie Cranston (AUB) def. Addison Klonowski (FLA) 2&1
  4. Molly Brown Davidson (AUB) def. Siuue Wu (FLA) 1UP
  5. Charlotte Cantonis (AUB) def. Paula Francisco (FLA) 4&3