Auburn earns decisive 4-1 win over 'Bama in East Lake final

ATLANTA (Oct. 31, 2018) – Auburn claimed a dominant victory over Alabama on Wednesday in the title match of the East Lake Cup. The Tigers won 4-1 against a team that on Tuesday had taken down Oklahoma State, the top-ranked team in the nation.

"The guys earned it to be here as I kept reminding them this week," head coach Nick Clinard said. "They didn't need any motivation to come in here and try to compete against some of the game's best. Any time you're playing Alabama, you know they've got great players. It feels good, no doubt about it."

Trace Crowe, Brandon Mancheno, Wells Padgett and Jacob Solomon all earned points for the team, with Padgett’s 4-and-3 victory over Franki Capan in the anchor match being the most lopsided. Padgett won the par-5 first hole with an eagle and never looked back.

Alabama’s Wilson Furr, who won the clinching point for the Tide on Tuesday in the semifinal match against Oklahoma State, defeated Jovan Rebula to put one Crimson point on the board.

Auburn led three of its matches from start to finish and has now won six of its last seven contests during match play events.

"We wanted this win badly," Mancheno said. "I think all of us wanted to not let Alabama get one point today. I thought we did pretty well."

Duke defeated Oklahoma State 3-2 in the consolation match. Only Viktor Hovland and Hayden Wood won points from Oklahoma State, and Hovland’s 2-and-1 victory over Alex Smalley included an ace at the par-3 11th, the first of his career.

Information from Auburn Athletics used in this report

Viktor Hovland made his first hole in one on No. 11 today at the #EastLakeCup. He gets to keep the pin flag as his trophy. pic.twitter.com/WePFXKEzpf

— East Lake Cup (@eastlakecup) October 31, 2018