BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — All good things must come to an end. Vanderbilt fell in the match play quarterfinals of the SEC Championships to Mississippi State on the third hole in a playoff hole at the Legacy Course at Greystone Golf Club on Saturday. With the score tied 2-2, the Commodores were unable to pull through to advance to their first-ever SEC Championship semifinals.
“This one is really going to sting for a bit,” said head coach Greg Allen. “We got the matchups we wanted but unfortunately come up one point short.”
Lynn Lim and Virginie Ding were the two Dores to win the matches outright. Lim carded a birdie four on the 6th and parred No. 7 to close out a 3&2 victory over Julia Lopez Ramirez, who was the medalist during the stroke play segment of the tournament. Ding and Isabell Pellot were tied with four holes remaining, but the Vandy junior claimed No. 6 and 7 before earning a 1 up win with a par at the par-four ninth.
Tillie Claggett and Celina Sattelkau dropped their matchups, losing 5&4 and 4&3, respectively. Tess Davenport went the distance with Mississippi State’s Abbey Daniel before eventually falling on the third playoff hole between the two.
“I can’t say enough about Lynn taking down the SEC champ. That was a huge point for us,” said Allen. “Ginnie was steady all day getting us the second point, and Tess was so clutch winning her 18th hole and sending her match to extra holes. She fought extremely hard but instead of her approach shot to the 12th green bouncing right and onto the green it kicked left into a bunker. It was a really tough shot, but I’m so proud of how she gave us a chance.
“Celina and Tillie gave it everything they had, but unfortunately they just didn’t have their best stuff today. That’s golf.”
Vanderbilt will now wait for the announcement of bids to NCAA Regionals—a feat they have achieved twice in the past three seasons—which will come on Golf Channel on April 26. In 2022, the Commodores advanced to the NCAA Championships after hosting and winning the Franklin Regional at the Vanderbilt Legends Club.
“Now it’s time to play the waiting game to see where we go for regionals next month,” said Allen. “It will be nice for the girls to get school and final exams behind them. I still think our best golf is ahead of us.”
In addition to advancing to match play at the SEC Championships for the fifth season in a row, the Commodores posted wins at the Ron Moore Intercollegiate and FAU Paradise Invitational while also finishing in the top three at both the Mason Rudolph Championship and the Battle at the Beach.
