[su_spacer size=”40″] Each team won two matches, while the fifth match halved. Southern Cal won because the margin of victory in its two wins was larger than in Georgia’s in its two.
[su_spacer size=”40″] The 75th-ranked Bulldogs tied for seventh in Friday’s stroke play-qualifying to earn a spot in a stacked eight-team championship bracket featuring six top-10 teams. Georgia defeated No. 3 South Carolina Saturday morning and then topped No. 9 Northwestern in the afternoon to reach Sunday’s final.
[su_spacer size=”40″] “I think Friday was huge, just to make the top eight,” head coach Josh Brewer said. “We were borderline, but our hard work finally paid of. After that, we were able to just relax and play golf. I was really proud of the energy we showed out there. We were high-fiving each other. I know that’s weird in our sport, but I think they need that. It helps you get pumped up if you just three-putted or made a mistake. It makes it feel more like a team.”
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[su_spacer size=”40″] “Ro played well today,” Brewer said. “Lee was amazing. That’s when you just have to tip your hat to someone and say ‘congrats.’ ”
[su_spacer size=”40″] Georgia surged to a 2-1 lead with a 2-and-1 victory by Harang Lee followed shortly thereafter by a 3-and-2 win by Manuela Carbajo Ré.
[su_spacer size=”40″] “It felt great to tie, but we didn’t get the trophy,” Carbajo Ré said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t win the tiebreaker. I enjoyed the surroundings. I enjoyed the course. I enjoyed the weather. I enjoyed the people watching and cheering for us. We didn’t win, but it was a positive weekend for us.”
[su_spacer size=”40″] USC’s Annie Park, who won the NCAA individual title while leading the Women of Troy to a team national title at the UGA Golf Course two years ago, won No. 18 to pull all-square and halve her match with Sylvie Brick.
[su_spacer size=”40″] Shortly thereafter, Kyung Kim, another member of the 2013 NCAA Championship team, birdied No. 17 to secure a 2-up decision over Sammi Lee.
[su_spacer size=”40″] “We’re disappointed we didn’t win but the weekend was a very good for us as a team,” Sammi Lee said. “We believe in ourselves 100 percent, we believe in each other and Josh believes in us. To be shooting the scores we have been recently and to have it unfold the way it has made it hard to keep believing we had it in us. But we proved it out there today. We were just as good as those kids. We didn’t win, but we deserve a spot with them.”
[su_spacer size=”40″] Ironically, the same tiebreaker that awarded Southern Cal the Liz Murphey title was the same one Georgia used a day earlier to defeat Northwestern.
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[su_spacer size=”40″] “I think we need to ride this confidence and maybe get our first victory of the year,” Brewer said. “We were really close today.”
[su_spacer size=”40″] 43rd Annual Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic
March 27-29
University of Georgia Golf Course
Athens, Ga.
Par 72; 6,404 Yards
[su_spacer size=”40″] Sunday’s Match Agate
[su_spacer size=”20″] Red Bracket
[su_spacer size=”10″] Championship Match – Southern Cal 2.5, Georgia 2.5
[su_spacer size=”10″] Harang Lee, Georgia, def. Karen Chung, Southern Cal, 2-1
Amy Lee, Southern Cal, def. Rocio Sanchez Lobato, Georgia, 6-and-4
Sylvie Brick, Georgia, vs. Annie Park, Southern Cal, all square
Manuela Carbajo Ré, Georgia, def. Gabriella Then, Southern Cal, 3-and-2
Kyung Kim, Southern Cal, def. Sammi Lee, Georgia, 2-and-1
Note: Southern Cal wins via larger differential in matches won
[su_spacer size=”20″] 3rd Place Match – Duke 4, Northwestern 1
[su_spacer size=”10″] Hannah Kim, Northwestern, def. Lisa Maguire, Duke, 1-up
Gurbani Singh, Duke, def. Suchaya Tangkamolprasert, Northwestern, 3-and-2
Sandy Choi, Duke, def. Kaitlin Park, Northwestern, 6-and-5
Leona Maguire, Duke, def. Kacie Komoto, Northwestern, 3-and-2
Celine Boutier, Duke, lead Hana Lee, Northwestern, 3-up thru 15
[su_spacer size=”20″] Fifth-Place Match – Baylor 3, South Carolina 2
[su_spacer size=”10″] Lauren Whyte, Baylor, def. Ainhoa Olarra, S. Carolina, 3-and-2
Jia Xin Yang, S. Carolina, def. Giovana Maymon, Baylor, 3-and-1
Katelyn Dambaugh, S. Carolina, def. Dylan Kim, Baylor, 3-and-2
Laura Lonardi, Baylor, def. Sarah Schmelzel, S. Carolina, 5-and-4
Hayley Davis, Baylor, def. Justine Dreher, S. Carolina, 2-and-1
[su_spacer size=”20″] Seventh-Place Match – UCLA 3, Arkansas 2
[su_spacer size=”10″] Erynne Lee, UCLA, def. Regina Plasencia, Arkansas, 4-and-3
Louise Ridderstrom, UCLA, def. Gabriela Lopez, Arkansas, 2-and-1
Summer Roachell, Arkansas, def. Lydia Choi, UCLA, 1-up
Erin Choi, UCLA, def. Jordy LaBarbera, Arkansas, 5-and-4
Bronte Law, UCLA, def. Samantha Marks, Arkansas, 3-and-1
[su_spacer size=”40″] Black Bracket
[su_spacer size=”10″] Purdue 3, Stanford 2
Quirine Eijkenboom, Stanford, def. August Kim, Purdue, 2-and-1
Marta Martin, Purdue, def. Casey Danielson, Stanford, 4-and-3
Aurora Kan, Purdue, def. Lauren Kim, Stanford, 2-and-1
Anna Appert Lund, Purdue, def. Mariah Stackhouse, Stanford, 4-and-3
Mariko Tumangan, Stanford, def. Johanna Tillström, Purdue, 5-and-4
[su_spacer size=”20″] Alabama 2.5, Auburn 2.5
Sophia Schubert, Auburn, def. Emma Talley, Alabama, 3-and-2
Kelli Murphy, Auburn, def. Mia Landegren, Alabama, 4-and-3
Janie Jackson, Alabama, def. Alex Harrell, Auburn, 3-and-2
Cammie Gray, Alabama, def. Jamin Yun, Auburn, 4-and-3
Nicole Morales, Alabama, vs. Victoria Trapani, Auburn, all square
Note: Alabama wins via being higher seed