ATHENS, Georgia - The Purdue women's golf team knocked off No. 22 Auburn and No. 21 Alabama during Saturday's black bracket match play rounds at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic, hosted by the University of Georgia. Freshman Marta Martin won a pair of matches while each of her teammates also posted a win as the Boilermakers improved to 3-1 on the year in match play.
Senior Johanna Tillström put the Boilermakers' first point on the board, pulling even with Victoria Trapani in the No. 5 position after the ninth hole. The senior from Sweden played even-par through five holes on the back nine, before sealing her victory with a birdie on 15 to win 4&3. Sophomore August Kim lost her match after she pulled within one with two holes to play against No. 2 Sophia Schubert, who gave Auburn their first point. Purdue took the lead when Martin led her opponent, Kelli Murphy the No. 3, from the first hole, finishing with a birdie on 18 to win by two.
The Tigers brought the scores level with Alex Harrell's win over senior Aurora Kan, who chipped away at a four-down deficit, but could not even the score, losing 3&2. Reigning Big Ten Golfer of the Week, junior Anna Appert Lund guided Purdue to victory, as she won four out of her final five holes to win 4&3 over Jamie Yun in the No. 1 spot, sealing the 3-2 win for the Boilermakers.
The Boilermakers took command of their afternoon match against Alabama with early wins from Kim and Martin. Kim put on a dominant performance over Nicole Morales from the start, with a three-hole lead through eight holes, before ending the match on the 14th hole to win 5&4. Martin put on a similar display against Cammie Gray, as she played even-par golf through 15 holes to win the bout 4&3.
Kan bounced back from her morning round with the most impressive pairing of the day to lift the Boilermakers to victory. The Chichester, Pa. native took the lead on the fifth hole and never looked back, as she defeated Mia Landegren, 6&5. Tillström and Appert Lund started to come back in their matches two-down with three to play and two-down with four to play, respectively, before Kan delivered the deciding point.
USC defeated UCLA, 3-2, and Duke, 4-1, advancing to face tournament host Georgia in tomorrow's Red Bracket finals. The Bulldogs defeated South Carolina, 3-2, and went to a playoff with Northwestern to advance to the final pairing.
Purdue will take on No. 14 Stanford tomorrow morning with the first tee time at 8:40 a.m., with the Black Bracket title on the line. For live scoring, visit BirdieFire.com.
ROUND 2 RESULTS
No. 44 Purdue 3 - No. 22 Auburn 2
Johanna Tillström (PUR) def. Victoria Trapani (AUB), 4&3
Sophia Schubert (AUB) def. August Kim (PUR), 1-up
Marta Martin (PUR) def. Kelli Murphy (AUB), 2&1
Alex Harrell (AUB) def. Aurora Kan (PUR), 3&2
Anna Appert Lund (PUR) def. Jamie Yun (AUB), 4&3
ROUND 3 RESULTS
No. 44 Purdue 3 - No. 21 Alabama 2
August Kim (PUR) def. Nicole Morales (ALA), 5&4
Marta Martin (PUR) def. Cammie Gray (ALA), 4&3
Janie Jackson (ALA) def. Johanna Tillström (PUR), 2-up (15 holes, DNF)
Emma Talley (ALA) def. Anna Appert Lund (PUR), 2-up (14 holes, DNF)
Aurora Kan (PUR) def. Mia Landegren (ALA), 4-up