FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, November 1st, 2016

LOWER SEEDS SWEEP TEAM SEMIFINALS AT EAST LAKE CUP WITH DUKE, WASHINGTON (WOMEN) & OREGON, ILLINOIS (MEN)ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH

Wednesday’s Championship Matches (Live, 3-6 p.m. ET on Golf Channel):

Duke vs. Washington (Women’s); Oregon vs. Illinois (Men’s)

Illinois Looking to Defend 2015 East Lake Cup Title on Wednesday

Consolation: Stanford vs. UCLA (Women’s); Texas vs. Vanderbilt (Men’s)

ATLANTA, Nov. 1, 2016 – Four teams advanced to tomorrow’s championship matches at the 2016 East Lake Cup presented by Hewlett Packard Enterprise, with Duke and Washington (women’s), Illinois and Oregon (men’s), each winning their semifinal matches on Tuesday at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. Despite their status as the lower seeded team in their respective semifinal matches (based on performance in yesterday’s stroke play competition), both No. 3 and No. 4 seeds managed to advance over their higher seeded opponents:

WOMEN: (No. 3) Duke def. (No. 2) UCLA 3-2; (No. 4) Washington def. (No. 1) Stanford 4-1

MEN: (No. 3) Illinois def. (No. 2) Texas 3-2; (No. 4) Oregon def. (No. 1) Vanderbilt 3-2

WOMEN’S SEMFINALS

Despite being separated by 34 shots in yesterday’s individual stroke play competition, Washington rallied to defeat top-seeded Stanford in a rematch of May’s national championship match. Leaning on its young lineup of freshmen and sophomores, the Huskies won their final four matches, punctuated by Wenyung Keh’s (sophomore) hole-out eagle on the par-5 14th hole that won the match, 5&4 over Stanford’s Shannon Aubert (junior). Duke – despite losing two of its first three semifinal matches –rallied to defeat UCLA 3-2, with victories from the world’s top ranked women’s amateur Leona Maguire (junior); Virginia Elena Carta (sophomore) and Ana Belac (freshman).

MEN’S SEMIFINALS

Following yesterday’s disappointing fourth place finish in the individual stroke play competition, the reigning national champion Oregon Ducks bounced back to defeat Vanderbilt 3-2, thanks to victories by Edwin Yi (sophomore), Ryan Gronlund (sophomore) and Wyndham Clark (senior). In the other semifinal match, Illinois (No. 3) defeated Texas (No. 2) 3-2, leaning on victories from Michael Feagles (freshman), Edoardo Lipparelli (sophomore) and Dylan Meyer (junior). Feagles set the pace in the first match out for the Illini after defeating Texas’ Scottie Scheffler – who claimed the individual championship on Monday with a 6-under round of 66 – despite Scheffler birdieing three of the first four holes in the match.

WEDNESDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP & CONSOLATION MATCHES SCHEDULE:

Women’s Championship Match: (No. 3) Duke vs. (No. 4) Washington

Men’s Championship Match: (No. 3) Illinois vs. (No. 4) Oregon

Women’s Consolation Match: (No. 1) Stanford vs. (No. 2) UCLA

Men’s Consolation Match: (No. 1) Vanderbilt vs. (No. 2) Texas

Golf Channel’s live coverage of Wednesday’s championship and consolation matches will air from 3-6 p.m. ET. Golf Central Pre-Game (2-3 p.m. ET) will preview each match, and provide updates on matches already in progress.

 

Time Tee  # Consolation Match Division Players
11:05 AM 1 Vanderbilt vs Texas Men’s Patrick Martin (Vanderbilt) vs Taylor Funk (Texas)
11:15 AM 1 Stanford vs UCLA Women’s Albane Valenzuela (Stanford) vs Clare Legaspi (UCLA)
11:25 AM 1 Vanderbilt vs Texas Men’s Will Gordon (Vanderbilt) vs Scottie Scheffler (Texas)
11:35 AM 1 Stanford vs UCLA Women’s Shannon Aubert (Stanford) vs Lilia Vu (UCLA)
11:45 AM 1 Vanderbilt vs Texas Men’s Matthias Schwab (Vanderbilt) vs Gavin Hall (Texas)
11:55 AM 1 Stanford vs UCLA Women’s Casey Danielson (Stanford) vs Mariel Galdiano (UCLA)
12:05 PM 1 Vanderbilt vs Texas Men’s John Augenstein (Vanderbilt) vs Doug Ghim (Texas)
12:15 AM 1 Stanford vs UCLA Women’s Andrea Lee (Stanford) vs Bethany Wu (UCLA)
12:25 PM 1 Vanderbilt vs Texas Men’s Theo Humphrey (Vanderbilt) vs Steven Chervony (Texas)
12:35 PM 1 Stanford vs UCLA Women’s Sierra Kersten (Stanford) vs Bronte Law (UCLA)
 
Time Tee  # Championship Match Division Players
12:45 PM 1 Illinois vs Oregon Men’s Nick Hardy (Illinois) vs Edwin Yi (Oregon)
12:55 PM 1 Duke vs Washington Women’s Lisa Maguire (Duke) vs Eun Won Park (Washington)
1:05 PM 1 Illinois vs Oregon Men’s Michael Feagles (Illinois) vs Ryan Gronlund (Oregon)
1:15 PM 1 Duke vs Washington Women’s Virginia Elena Carta (Duke) vs Ellen Takada (Washington)
1:25 PM 1 Illinois vs Oregon Men’s Edoardo Lipparelli (Illinois) vs Nigel Lett (Oregon)
1:35 PM 1 Duke vs Washington Women’s Leona Maguire (Duke) vs Julianne Alvarez (Washington)
1:45 PM 1 Illinois vs Oregon Men’s Dylan Meyer (Illinois) vs Wyndham Clark (Oregon)
1:55 PM 1 Duke vs Washington Women’s Sandy Choi (Duke) vs Sarah Rhee (Washington)
2:05 PM 1 Illinois vs Oregon Men’s Bryan Baumgarten (Illinois) vs Sulman Raza (Oregon)
2:15 PM 1 Duke vs Washington Women’s Ana Belac (Duke) vs Wenyung Keh (Washington)

 

SEMIFINAL RESULTS:

Women’s Division

(No. 3) Duke def. (No. 2) UCLA 3-2

(No. 4) Washington def. (No. 1) Stanford 4-1

 

Stanford (No. 1)                                vs.                                Washington (No. 4)

Andrea Lee (5&4)                                                                 Eun Won Park

Casey Danielson                                                          (2&1) Ellen Takada

Sierra Kersten                                                             (3&1)  Julianne Alvarez

Albane Valenzuela                                                      (5&4) Sarah Rhee

Shannon Aubert                                                          (5&4) Wenyung Keh

 

UCLA (No. 2)                                    vs.                                Duke (No.3)

Bronte Law (3&2)                                                                 Sandy Choi

Lilia Vu                                                                       (5&3) Virginia Elena Carta

Clare Legaspi (2up)                                                              Lisa Maguire

Mariel Galdiano                                                          (4&2) Leona Maguire

Bethany Wu                                                                (3&2)  Ana Belac

 

Men’s Division

(No. 3) Illinois def. (No. 2) Texas 3-2

(No. 4) Oregon def. (No. 1) Vanderbilt 3-2

 

Vanderbilt (No. 1)                             vs.                                Oregon (No. 4)

John Augenstein                                                         (2&1) Edwin Yi

Theo Humphrey                                                          (2up)  Ryan Gronlund

Will Gordon                                                                (2up)  Wyndham Clark

Patrick Martin (5&4)                                                            Nigel Lett

Matthias Schwab (2&1)                                                        Sulman Raza

 

Texas (No. 2)                                       vs.                              Illinois (No. 3)

Scottie Scheffler                                                         (3&1) Michael Feagles

Gavin Hall (2&1)                                                                   Bryan Baumgarten

Steven Chervony                                                        (2&1)  Edoardo Lipparelli

Doug Ghim (4&2)                                                                 Nick Hardy

Taylor Funk                                                                 (2&1)  Dylan Meyer

 

QUOTES

Washington Head Coach Mary Lou Mulflur on the target on her team’s back as reigning national champions – “We really tried to stress that in match play, anything can happen. We’re the living, breathing poster child of that… To beat Stanford and beat them soundly, now the goal is really not to get too high… “I’ve spent all summer and fall trying to protect them from reigning champions everywhere we go. And what I didn’t realize was that I wasn’t really paying attention to being the reigning champion coach. And they could feel I was acting like I was fine and okay, but they could feel that I wasn’t. So they basically called me out on it. And we all got together this morning and got a lot of stuff out in the open. It’s just a testament to those kids and how special they are, because I knew it came from a place of absolute love and caring.”

Mulflur on having a young team – “There was no strategy really for us. We put our two freshmen out first and our three sophomores after that. We’re just trying to learn as we go. And just to have the experience here with the TV and the leaderboards and the commentators. That you can’t emulate anywhere else during the season. So for us to be here and provide this opportunity for a very young team is great for us. I think it was Wenyung who said, ‘In match play you just have to be patient.’ Because it can turn just like that. Julianne was saying that you can hit it everywhere, but if you make par eventually you’re going to wear down your opponent. Our entire team has three years of experience, and for them to play the way they did is just extraordinary.”

Mulflur on her young team advancing to Wednesday’s championship match – “You’ve got two freshman that weren’t even [at the national championship], and you’ve got three sophomores that every time they turn around somebody is congratulating them and feeling the pressure of having to be great all the time in a nutshell. We’re learning from it every day about ourselves and we’re going to keep enjoying the ride and having fun.”

Washington’s Julianne Alvarez on advancing to the championship match – “Last night and this morning we really addressed some issues and we went out there and made sure that we believed in our abilities and it really showed today. The confidence we got from today – after the first day – it showed that we still know how to play golf. We’ve just got to take what we did today and take that self-confidence and belief against Duke.”

Illinois Head Coach Mike Small on defeating Texas 3-2 – “I thought that our resiliency and our focus was good today. Michael flipped that first match around which was huge. For a freshman to come out and do that, it speaks volumes for Michael and his potential. Positive day, we learned a lot about our team. Dylan responded and played well coming down the stretch. Edoardo is a momentum player too, and when he gets on a rhythm he’s pretty good.”

Illinois’ Dylan Meyer on winning the anchor match – “My success this spring is what has propelled and given me forward progress for what I’m doing here at the East Lake Cup. Coach [Small] put me there, [but] it is not a strategic thing. It was go out and beat your man, no matter if I was the first guy out or the last guy out. It was my job to beat my opponent.”

Illinois’ Michael Feagles on winning his match against Texas’ Scottie Scheffler – “I was playing good early, but I missed three putts inside of 10 feet for birdie on the first three holes. So I was right there. It’s not like I was giving holes. [Scottie] made a lot of really good putts and I just found myself down really quick. When I made the turn, I was suddenly 1 up, and things were kind of starting to roll.”

Feagles on the East Lake Cup – “Our coaches built this tournament into our schedule to give us the experience of taking on stroke play first and then transforming it into match play. And that just gives us a lot of insight of what it’s going to be like when May rolls around and when we’re competing for a national championship. So, it’s really important to build these experiences and build the confidence that no matter who we play, we can win.”

Oregon Head Coach Casey Martin on Wednesday’s championship match – “We are going to need to play great tomorrow. Illinois is an amazing team. There is nothing we can do at home to create this environment of a golf course like this with the rough, with people watching, with TV cameras and match play against the best players. This is invaluable. It is awesome that we are getting this experience and tomorrow, win lose or draw, we are going to be a better team for having gone through it.”

Oregon’s Wyndham Clark on defeating Vanderbilt’s Will Gordon – “I’ve been in a lot of match play situations and coming down the stretch you’ve just got to keep your head and your wits about you. I was proud of myself that I found the fairway on the last two holes and that’s ultimately what allowed me to win. To be honest we both didn’t play that great in the first few holes. But I didn’t want to give him holes coming down the stretch and I think as the round went on that kind of wore him down a bit.”

Duke Head Coach Dan Brooks on competing at the East Lake Cup – “I feel like we’re kind of coming together a little bit here at the end of the season. I like the fact that they moved a little stroke play into this [event] so we‘ve got this little mini championship. We’ve got the same feeling that first day that you have those first four days at nationals. And of course the match play is just so much fun.”

Brooks on Virginia Elena Carta winning her match over UCLA’s Lilia Vu – “I’m not surprised with the way Virginia played. When she got in the national championship, the best of Virginia came out in those matches.”

Duke’s Virginia Elena Carta – “My game is back together. It has been a really tough fall, because I’ve been sick the entire time, I’m still sick now. This morning it just clicked, there was that button and I was like, ‘hey, this is over. Fall is over, this is match play, not stroke play. Just focus one shot at a time, don’t think about your opponent’s game.’”

Brooks on tomorrow’s championship match – “I’m going to make sure we take Washington very seriously. Washington is a good team, plus this is match play and you’ve got to get after it.”

Duke’s Leona Maguire on the depth of the field – “The best players and best teams in the country are here, and obviously it is a redo from nationals last year. It is a little different dynamic. It maybe does not feel quite as much as on the line, but it is definitely good preparation to see where teams are at and obviously with players graduating and then new freshmen coming in.”

Stanford Head Coach Anne Walker on the experience of competing in the East Lake Cup – “I think this is a good thing for us. I think that the curse of the No. 1 seed is being well talked about. And today we had the opportunity to practice being the No. 1 seed and we did not do very well at it. We’ve got a lot of things to look at and think how we can do better in May.”

Vanderbilt Head Coach Scott Limbaugh on losing to Oregon and tomorrow’s consolation match – “I challenged our guys to really have the right mindset because match play is man-on-man. We didn’t play great golf today and [Oregon] went out and took advantage of that, and they just beat us. You have to commend them for that. They were ready to play. We were ready to play a good team. They were better on this day and that is what athletics is all about. It is important that we come out a little more focused tomorrow and understand it is one more day for us to grow to be the team we want to be.”

Presented by Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), the East Lake Cup Collegiate Match Play Championship features the two reigning NCAA national champions (Oregon men and Washington women); the two current top-ranked programs in the country (Vanderbilt men and UCLA women); and the 2015 East Lake Cup men’s champions, Illinois. The field also showcases Nos. 1 and 2 in the women’s amateur golf rankings (Leona Maguire – Duke, Bronte Law – UCLA), along with four of the top-8 ranked players in the men’s collegiate individual rankings, including top-ranked Wyndham Clark (Oregon); third-ranked Dylan Meyer (Illinois); sixth-ranked Matthias Schwab (Vanderbilt) and eighth-ranked Doug Ghim (Texas) [based on Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings].

For more information about the East Lake Cup please visit the tournament website here. Stay connected with the championship using the hashtag #EastLakeCup.

 

-NBC Sports Group-