LEXINGTON, Ky.?The University of Kentucky women?s golf team is set to begin the 2007 SEC Championships on Friday hosted by Mississippi State at the Old Waverly Golf Club.
Nine SEC clubs are ranked in the top-30 in the country including four in the top-10. Georgia is ranked third, Auburn is fifth, Vanderbilt is seventh, and Florida holds the 10th spot in the national rankings.
Kentucky has used its spring campaign to improve in many areas on the course and is looking to better last season?s 11th place finish among its conference foes. UK placed in the top-10 five times this season in 10 tournaments and freshman Erica Still placed in the top-10 in one tournament to lead the individuals.
The last time out, UK jumped out to a first round fifth place day one with an opening round of 310. The Wildcats tumbled slightly in the second round and finished 13th in the Indiana Invitational. Still led the Blue and White in scoring for the seventh time this season and fifth consecutive tournament.
This will be the final SEC Championships for two Kentucky seniors Katie Johnson and Marissa Muir. Johnson was recently named to the SEC Community Service Team for the second consecutive season. The former walk-on has appeared in a career-high 11 tournaments and 31 rounds played as a senior.
Muir will also appear in a career-high 11 tournaments and 31 rounds played. She currently has her second-lowest season average of her career.
The story this season has easily been the play of Still. The rookie from Waycross, Ga., leads the Wildcats in just about every statistical category including per-round average and birdies. She also ranks in the top-tier in the country in her final round scoring average. The freshman has carded six consecutive final rounds of 79 or below. She has also placed in the top 40 individually in nine tournaments this season, led by a second place showing in the Peggy Kirk Bell Classic.
Juniors Elizabeth Dotson and Beth Felts round out the Wildcat lineup. A season ago Dotson and Felts paced the Wildcats in the SEC Championships. This season, Dotson put together her most complete tournaments in the Blue and White?s last two outings. The Tennessee native has only appeared in the spring tournament slate as she is still recovering from off-season knee surgery.
Felts has enjoyed another steady season. She has led the team in scoring in three events. Felts is also responsible for the team?s lowest round of the season, a second round 71 in the Cardinal Cup.
The SEC Championships will be played over the course of three days beginning on Friday. Each day the teams will take the tee at 9:30 a.m. EDT.
Considered one of the finest courses in the South, the Old Waverly Golf Club will play as a par-72, 6,246-yard course for the championship. The course has hosted a number of prestigious events including the 1999 U.S. Women’s Open and most recently the 2006 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur. The course also hosted the SEC Men’s Championship in 1991.
Complete results of the Wildcats? participation in the 2007 SEC Championships can be found at www.ukathletics.com.
