After the Florida women’s golf team advanced to the SEC Championship Quarterfinals Friday, they fell to Texas A&M the following day, ending their run in the tournament. The squad now awaits its placement in the NCAA Regional selection on April 26.
This was the second straight year the Gators made the match play cut.
Stroke Play Portion
The first leg of the SEC Championship was a stroke play portion.ย Only the top eight of the 14 SEC teams competing in the tournament would make the cut and advance into the match play portion. The Gators teed off at the Greystone Golf and Country Club in Birmingham, Alabama, Wednesday and finished their third round of stroke play Friday.
Florida had an impressive round one, shooting a 290, which was good enough for second place behind Vanderbilt. However, round two was rough, as rainy weather conditions made scoring difficult. The Gators shot a 309 and fell down to eighth place, one spot away from missing the cut.
However, in round three, they got back in their groove and propelled themselves up to sixth place. The finish was good enough to make the cut with a final score of 891 (+27).
Marina Escobar shined in the tournament, shooting a 216 (E), good enough for a T4 finish in the entire field.
Annabell Fuller also played well, finishing T15 with a score of 222 (+6).
Gators ๐๐ฑ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ โ
Florida makes match play for the second straight season at the #SECGolf Championship ๐#GoGators ๐ pic.twitter.com/u34XrEOI1N
— Gators Golf (@GatorsGolf) April 14, 2023
Match Play Portion
In the second component of the tournament, the Gators faced the Texas A&M Aggies in a 5 vs. 5 match play. Essentially, a Florida golfer would go head to head against an A&M golfer, and they would battle for each hole. Whoever scored the lowest on the hole won a point. If they tied, it would be halved.
While each match was close, the Aggies ultimately pulled away from the Gators, as they won four of the five matches. Maisie Filler was the only Gator to come out on top of her match, and the final score of the competition came in at 4-1 Texas A&M.
Texas A&M would go on to win the championship over Mississippi State on Sunday.
https://twitter.com/SECNetwork/status/1647669601122099206?s=20
What’s Next for Florida
Florida now has to wait for the NCAA Regional selection. The selection names the teams that will continue play in the postseason and takes place Sunday at 1 p.m.