Auburn and Wake Forest (women), along with Oklahoma State and Texas (men) each won their semifinal match on Tuesday to secure a spot in Wednesday’s championship match at the East Lake Cup in Atlanta. The women’s match will feature a contest between two teams making their first-ever appearance in the East Lake Cup, while the men’s championship will be a rematch from the semifinals at the NCAA Championship earlier this year between Big 12 conference foes.
EAST LAKE CUP FINAL DAY NOW AIRING LIVE AT 10:30 A.M. ET WEDNESDAY:
Due to anticipated inclement weather on Wednesday, tee times have been moved up for the championship and consolation matches. Tee times will now begin at 8:30 a.m. ET, using split tees (championship matches off No. 1 tee; consolation matches off No. 10 tee). As a result, GOLF Channel’s live tournament coverage now will begin at 10:30 a.m. ET and continue until play concludes.
SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
- WOMEN: (4) Auburn def. (1) Duke, 3-2; (3) Wake Forest def. (2) Arizona, 3-1-1
- MEN: (1) Texas def. (4) Vanderbilt, 4-1-1; (3) Oklahoma State def. (2) Wake Forest 3-2
WOMEN’S SEMIFINALS
Despite finishing fourth in the stroke play portion of the competition on Monday, Auburn prevailed over the reigning national champion Duke Blue Devils courtesy of victories from Mychael O’Berry, Megan Schofill and Brooke Sansom. O’Berry earned the clinching point for the Tigers, defeating Duke’s Ana Belac in convincing fashion, 5&4.
“Obviously we’re very pleased with the match today,” Auburn head coach Melissa Luellen said. “We knocked off the national champions, but we have to get ourselves ready for tomorrow and the same mindset of ‘It’s a brand new day.’ Again, in match play, anything can happen. We’re just excited to have the opportunity to compete.”
In the other semifinal, Wake Forest leaned on its three veterans who contributed to the team’s runner-up finish at the national championship earlier this year, earning winning points from Emilia Migliaccio (junior), Siyun Liu (senior) and Vanessa Knecht (sophomore).
“These ladies are fired up – and they love match play,” Wake Forest head coach Kim Lewellen said. “I want [our team] to go and enjoy the moment [tomorrow], figure out how they can improve in match play, and take everything they can from this experience.”
MEN’S SEMIFINALS
The Longhorns earned pivotal points in each of its two matches that went to extra holes, as freshman Travis Vick (19 holes) and senior Spencer Soosman (22 holes) outlasted their Vanderbilt opponents to help Texas earn a spot in the championship match on Wednesday.
“Every little bit of match play that you play, it’s going to help you,” Texas head coach John Fields said. “We’ve got four guys here that played in the national championship [earlier this year], and we’ll get ready this evening for tomorrow. Looking forward to having a chance to win the East Lake Cup.”
The other men’s semifinal came down to the fifth and final match, where Oklahoma State’s Aman Gupta (sophomore) edged Wake Forest’s Eric Bae in a match that came down to the 18th hole. Austin Eckroat (junior) and Brian Stark (freshman) registered the other points for the Cowboys, who will be looking to capture their first victory at the East Lake Cup in their second consecutive appearance in the event.
“Getting match play experience is huge,” Oklahoma State head coach Alan Bratton said. “That’s great for our guys to have to make putts where they know what it means. I’m excited to see what we can do [tomorrow].”
WEDNESDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP & CONSOLATION MATCHES:
Women’s Championship Match: (3) Wake Forest vs. (4) Auburn
Men’s Championship Match: (1) Texas vs. (3) Oklahoma State
Women’s Consolation Match: (1) Duke vs. (2) Arizona
Men’s Consolation Match: (2) Wake Forest vs. (4) Vanderbilt
Due to anticipated inclement weather, GOLF Channel’s live coverage of Wednesday’s championship and consolation matches will now begin at 10:30 a.m. ET. Golf Central will immediately follow live coverage of the East Lake Cup.
