Auburn the last team standing as it sweeps past surprising Mississippi State in SEC final to claim title

    The Southeastern Conference Championship, which concluded Sunday with Auburn claiming its 10^th conference championship, but its first since 2012, with a 5-0 victory over upstart Mississippi State at Greystone Golf & Country Club in Birmingham, Ala. was a reminder of the vagaries of match play.

   The SEC added a layer of match play to it conference championship a couple of years ago to prepare its teams for the possibility of being one of the eight teams left standing after stroke play in the NCAA Championship and being thrust into the strange new world of match play.

   Last week at Greystone, LSU, No. 4 in the latest Golfstat rankings, and No. 1 South Carolina dominated the 54 holes of stroke play, turning it into an absolute birdie-fest. LSU, behind individual runnerup Ingrid Lindblad, a sophomore from Sweden and No. 3 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), went 46-under-par in claiming the top seed for match play. No. 1 South Carolina, behind SEC individual champion Pauline Roussin-Bouchard, a sophomore from France and No. 4 in the Women’s WAGR, finished second in stroke play with a 37-under total.

   But neither LSU nor South Carolina was still around when it came time to crown an SEC champion in Sunday’s match-play final.

   Many of the same Auburn players who made what, at the time, seemed like a surprising run to the semifinals of the 2019 NCAA Championship at The Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark. were part of the run to the 2021 SEC title. And the Tigers have certainly gained respect since then.

   They came in ranked No. 9 and they finished third in the stroke-play qualifying with a 25-under 839 total. Then Auburn went about the gritty business of match play, downing No. 25 and sixth-seeded Vanderbilt, 3.5-1.5, in Saturday morning’s quarterfinals and taking down bitter cross-state rival Alabama, ranked 26^th and seeded seventh, again by a 3.5-1.5 margin, in Saturday afternoon’s semifinals.

   Mississippi State, on the other hand, came to Greystone ranked 44^th and possibly on the bubble, if there is such a thing in college golf, for a berth in the NCAA regionals. But the Bulldogs might have secured themselves a regional berth with their showing in the SEC Championship.

   Seeded fifth, Mississippi State stunned cross-state rival Mississippi, seeded fourth and ranked fifth, 3-2, in the quarterfinals. It was Ole Miss that was the surprise team of the last contested SEC Championship in 2019, capturing the program’s first conference crown and reaching the NCAA Championship at The Blessings. Ole Miss proved it was still a formidable team with its 3-2 victory over SEC rival South Carolina in the East Lake Cup final last fall.

   But Mississippi State wasn’t finished. The Bulldogs proceeded to stun top-seeded LSU, 3.5-1.5, in Saturday afternoon’s semifinals. The Bayou Tigers’ spectacular 46-under showing in stroke play suddenly didn’t matter. The feeling of the loss to Mississippi State will be very helpful to LSU should it advance to match play in next month’s NCAA Championship at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz.

   Auburn, with four players in the lineup from its NCAA semifinal loss to Wake Forest at The Blessings two springs ago, fought off upset-minded Mississippi State in the title match. And it wasn’t easy over a Greystone layout that played to 6,187 yards and a par of 72 for the SEC final.

   Kaleigh Telfer, a senior from South Africa and No. 50 in the Women’s WAGR, earned a 1-up decision over Abbey Daniel, a sophomore from Covington, La. Megan Schofill, a sophomore from Monticello, Fla. and No. 39 in the Women’s WAGR, was taken to the 18^th hole before pulling out a 1-up victory over Ashley Gilliam, a sophomore from Manchester, Tenn. Schofill was the lone player in the Auburn lineup who was not involved in the 2019 run to the NCAA semifinals.

   The clinching point came from Elena Hualde Zuniga, a fifth-year player from Spain who earned a 3 and 2 win over Hannah Levi, a redshirt sophomore from D’Iberville, Miss.

   Brooke Sansom, a redshirt junior from Pike Road, Ala., was also taken to the 18^th hole before claiming a 1-up victory over Claire Mayano, a graduate student from Spain. Completing the sweep for Auburn was Mychael O’Berry, a senior from Hoover, Ala. who earned a 2 and 1 decision over Blair Stockett, a senior from Jackson, Miss.

   “I’m so unbelievably proud of the entire group,” Melissa Luellen, who guided Arizona State to an NCAA crown in 2009 before arriving at Auburn, told the Auburn website. “Our whole team, all 10 of them, were out here to support. This year has truly been a group effort and they just had so much poise and maturity to be able to flip all those matches around. I’m just excited.”

   That Auburn-Alabama rivalry you see on the football field every November, that exists in every sport. Which made the Tigers’ semifinal win over the Crimson Tide, which has dominated the SEC at times, all the more significant.

   Schofill hooked up with Alabama’s best player, Benedetta Moresco, a freshman from Italy and No. 21 in the Women’s WAGR, and gutted out a victory in 19 holes.

   Telfair earned a 3 and 2 win over Caroline Curtis, a sophomore from Richmond, Va., O’Berry knocked off Kenzie Wright, a graduate student from Frisco, Texas, 2 and 1, and Sansom battled Polly Mack, a senior from Germany to a draw.

   Alabama’s full point came from Emilie Overas, a sophomore from Norway who edged Hualde Zuniga, 1-up.

   Not sure there was a more surprising result than Mississippi State’s takedown of LSU. The Bayou Tigers’ Lindblad has been playing as well as anybody in college golf, contending for a long time before finishing in the big logjam tied for third place in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur Championship.

   But Mississippi State’s Gilliam battled Lindblad to a draw. Daniel claimed a 2 and 1 victory over Carla Tejedo Mulet a freshman from Spain, Stockett knocked off Latanna Stone, a sophomore from Riverview, Fla. and No. 77 in the Women’s WAGR, 2 and 1, and Levi pulled out a 2-up victory over Kendall Griffin, a senior from Sebring, Fla.

   LSU’s only full point came from Alden Wallace, a junior from Shreveport, La. who earned a 2 and 1 win over Mayano.

   The upsets started early Saturday, particularly Alabama’s 3.5-1.5 stunner over top-ranked South Carolina.

   In the feature match, the Crimson Tide’s Moresco managed to get a tie with Roussin-Bouchard, who had been nothing short of brilliant in winning the SEC individual crown.

   Mack claimed a 4 and 2 victory over Ana Pelaez, a fifth-year senior from Spain and No. 14 in the Women’s WAGR, Overas blitzed Pimnipa Panthong, the former Kent State standout from Thailand who transferred to South Carolina for her fifth year of eligibility and is No. 91 in the Women’s WAGR, with a 5 and 4 victory, and Wright rolled to a 4 and 3 decision over Paula Kirner, a freshman from Germany.

   Schofill claimed a 5 and 4 victory over fellow U.S. Curtis Cup team candidate Auston Kim, a junior from St. Augustine, Fla. and No. 59 in the Women’s WAGR, to jump-start Auburn’s 3.5-1.5 win over Vanderbilt.

   Stone, Lindblad and Wallace all had relatively easy match wins as LSU got past Arkansas, 3-2, to reach the semifinals. The Razorbacks were seeded eighth and brought a No.-12 ranking to Greystone.

   The Bayou Tigers probably figured they were going to get Ole Miss in that semifinal match, but Mississippi State had other ideas.

   Gilliam sent the Bulldogs into the semifinals by earning the deciding point in 19 holes over Ole Miss’ Julia Johnson, who took up the NCAA on its offer of an extra year of eligibility to make up for the spring of her senior season stolen by the coronavirus pandemic. Johnson, of St. Gabriel, La. and No. 51 in the Women’s WAGR, has been a steady force in Ole Miss’ emergence as a player in the SEC and on the national scene.

   Mayona claimed a 4 and 3 victory over Andrea Ligneli, a senior from Sweden, and Levi earned a 4 and 3 decision over Smilla Sonderby, a freshman from Denmark, for Mississippi State’s other two points.

   LSU and South Carolina threw down some pretty powerful opening statements when stroke play commenced last Wednesday, the Bayou Tigers and the Gamecocks each firing a 16-under 272. And LSU never took its foot off the gas, adding a 12-under 276 in Thursday’s second round before closing with the best team round of the tournament, an 18-under 270 that left it with a remarkable 46-under 818 total.

   South Carolina cooled off with a 7-under 281 in Thursday’s second round before posting a 14-under 274 in the final round to finish nine shots behind LSU with its 37-under 827 total.

   Auburn, the ultimate champion, was the best of the rest, adding a 10-under 289 to its opening-round 279 before closing with a 282 to finish in third place, 12 shots behind the Bayou Tigers at 25-under 839. Old Miss was four shots behind Auburn in fourth place, the Rebels adding a 280 to their opening-round 279 and finishing up with a 284 for a 21-under 843 total.

   Mississippi State hinted at what was to come when the Bulldogs opened with a 13-under 275. They would back off with a 2-under 286 in the second round before matching par in the final round with a 288 that left them in a tie for fifth place with Vanderbilt at 15-under 849. Not sure what the tiebreaker was, but Mississippi State got the fifth seed, setting up a fateful quarterfinal meeting with its cross-state rival Ole Miss.

   Vanderbilt matched par in the second round with a 288 after opening with a 281 before closing with a solid 8-under 280 to catch Mississippi State at 15-under. Alabama was a shot behind Mississippi State and Vanderbilt in seventh place with a 14-under 850 total. The Crimson Tide opened with a solid 8-under 280 and cooled off with a 1-over 298 in Thursday’s second round before closing with a 7-under 281.

   No. 39 Tennessee and No. 28 Florida each closed with a solid 6-under 282, but couldn’t catch Arkansas for the final berth in match play. The Razorbacks started fast with a 9-under 279 and added a 283 before struggling to a final round of 2-over 290 for a 12-under 852 total.

   The Vols added a 285 to their opening-round 286 before their final-round 282 left them at 11-under 853. The Gators got off to a good start with an opening round of 9-under 279, but cooled off with a 4-over 292 in Thursday’s second round before their final-round 282 left them tied with Tennessee at 853, one frustrating shot short of a match-play berth.

   Lindblad led the way for LSU in qualifying as she was routinely excellent, adding a blazing final round of 8-under 64 to a pair of 69s in the first two rounds that left her three shots behind Roussin-Bouchard in second place with a 14-under 202 total.

   Stone contributed a 7-under 65 of her own to LSU’s remarkable final round as she finished in fourth place with a 12-under 204 total. Stone had added a 3-under 69 to her opening-round 70.

   Griffin started fast with a 5-under 67 before adding a pair of 69s that left her among a trio of players tied for fifth place at 11-under 205. Wallace gave the Bayou Tigers a fourth finisher inside the top 10 as she landed among a trio of players tied for 10^th place at 8-under 208. Wallace opened with a sparkling 6-under 66 and added a 70 before matching par in the final round with a 72.

   Rounding out the LSU lineup was Tejedo Mulet, who finished among the group tied for 31^st place at 2-under 214. Tejedo Mulet matched par in the opening round with a 72 that the Bayou Tigers were able to throw out and added a 3-under 69 in Thursday’s second round before closing with a 1-over 73.

   Roussin-Bouchard played very much like a player who has been hanging around near the top of the Women’s WAGR for the last couple of years. She fired back-to-back 67s in the first two rounds before finishing up with a 7-under 65 for a 17-under 199 total that was three shots better than Lindblad. It was an SEC Championship record for 54 holes and a South Carolina program record for 54 holes.

   Vanderbilt’s Celine Sattelaku, a sophomore from Germany, sandwiched a 69 in Thursday’s second round with a pair of 5-under 67s to finish alone in third place at 13-under 203, a shot behind Lindblad and a shot ahead of Stone.

   Joining LSU’s Griffin in the trio tied for fifth place at 205 were Ole Miss’ Johnson and Mississippi State’s Levi. Johnson and Levi had identical splits as each added a 70 in Thursday’s second round to an opening round of 5-under 67 before finishing up with a 68 to get it to 11-under.

   South Carolina’s Mathilde Claisse, a sophomore from France, finished alone in eighth place as she sandwiched a 4-under 68 in Thursday’s second round with a pair of 69s for a 10-under 206 total. Arkansas’ Brooke Matthews, a junior from Rogers, Ark. and No. 59 in the Women’s WAGR, was a shot behind Claisse in ninth place as she opened with a sparkling 6-under 66 and added a 71 in Thursday’s second round before closing with a 70 for a 9-under 207 total.

   Joining LSU’s Wallace in the trio tied for 10^th place at 8-under 208 were South Carolina’s Pelaez and Georgia’s Jenny Bae, a junior from Suwanee, Ga. Pelaez opened with a scintillating 8-under 64 that was good for an SEC Championship single-round record (matched in the final round by Lindblad), but cooled off with a 73 in Thursday’s second round before finishing up with a 71. After matching par in the opening round with a 72, Bae fired back-to-back 4-under 68s in the final two rounds.