BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Greenwood’s Mary Langdon Gallagher has seen a great rise in the women’s golf program at Mississippi State.
And the former Pillow Academy standout has helped play a major role in that growth.
Tying the program’s best finish in the Southeastern Conference championships, the Lady Bulldog golf team tied for fifth at Greystone Country Club with Kentucky last weekend.
Not only did the share of fifth place tie the best conference finish from the 2000 championships, but it also broke the school record for consecutive top-10 finishes. State has now posted a top-10 card in all 10 events it has appeared in this season.
Second-ranked Alabama ran away with the conference championship, claiming a 14-stroke victory against second-place No. 18 Georgia.
Gallagher birdied the final hole of the three-round event to tie for 19th overall. It was her first top-20 finish of the season.
The Lady Bulldogs will advance to the NCAA Regionals for the first time since 2006.
“I am so excited for this team because we’ve never been in this situation before,” Gallagher said. “We’ve got a really young team. I am the oldest player as a junior, so we’ve got everybody coming back for next year.
“When I got here as a freshman, Mississippi State was ranked 143rd nationally, and now we’re in the top 60.”
Gallagher stormed out of the gates during the opening round, posting a 3-over-par 75 for her team’s best score of the day.
She again shot 75 the second day but fell off a little in the final round with an 82.
“I played pretty well the first two days but got a little nervous the last day and got out of my routine and just couldn’t slow myself down,” Gallagher said.
Gallagher has a strong golfing pedigree. Her father, Jim, is a five-time winner on the PGA Tour, and her mother, Cissye, has won a state record 11 Mississippi amateur golf titles.
Gallagher’s teammate Ally McDonald posted a final-round 79 to secure a share of third place after posting a 77 and 70 during the first two rounds.
It was the standout sophomore’s second consecutive top-3 finish and McDonald’s fifth top-5 in the last seven events.
MSU’s Rica Tse used a 1-over-par 73 Sunday to climb into a share of eighth place — her best finish of the season.
“I could not have asked for more from the team this weekend,” third-year MSU coach Ginger Brown-Lemm said on Sunday. “All season we have preached focusing on one shot at a time and sticking to a routine and this weekend each and everyone of the girls accomplished that.
“I cannot express how proud I am of these girls, this program and Mississippi State. They never gave in throughout the whole season and kept working and fighting. I’m so glad they were able to see the benefits of all that hard.”
