The South Carolina Gamecocks defeated the Gators women’s golf team in the semifinal match play round of the East Lake Cup.
Florida went 1-3-1 in matches Tuesday, with senior Addie Baggarly claiming the only victory. She took the lead on the first hole and controlled her match the entire round.
However, the Gators were put in a hole by sophomores Marina Escobar Domingo and Annabell Fuller when they dropped their matches, both by one stroke.
Florida needed both freshman Maisie Filler and junior Clara Manzalini to win their matches to advance to the championship round against Ole Miss. The Rebels waxed the Texas Longhorns in the other semifinal match, going 4-0-1 in individual matches.
A tiebreaker decided both matches. Manzalini entered her tiebreaker against Gamecock senior Lois Kaye Go after they tied each of the last three holes. Manzalini fell on the 19th hole, ensuring that South Carolina would take the overall win.
Filler was poised to win her individual match after going up a stroke after the 16th hole. She went up against South Carolina freshman Paula Kirner, who was able to tie things up at the 18th hole. This match ended in a tie because the result of the larger match had already been determined.
The Gators will compete in the third-place match against the Longhorns Wednesday. Due to weather concerns, their match has been moved up to 8:30 a.m.
The East Lake Cup will be shown live from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on the Golf Channel, then will be replayed from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Contact Michael Hull at mhull@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @Michael_Hull33.
Michael Hull is a fourth-year journalism sports & media major and a sports writer at The Alligator. He hosts the weekly sports podcast and has worked on staff for five semesters. In the past, Hull has served as the sports editor, the men's and women's golf beat writer, the volleyball beat writer and the football beat writer.
