Bulldogs Lopez Ramirez, Daniel honored by SEC
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Two members of the Mississippi State women’s golf team collected postseason awards in a vote by the league’s head coaches, the Southeastern Conference announced on Thursday.
Julia Lopez Ramirez secured some of the league’s highest honors, highlighted by being selected the SEC Freshman of the Year.
In addition to her SEC Freshman of the Year honor, Lopez Ramirez earned first team ALL-SEC honors and SEC All-freshman team accolades. Lopez Ramirez wasn’t alone in earning SEC recognition on Thursday as junior Abbey Daniel was selected to the SEC Community Service Team for all her hard work outside of the golf course.
“First, let me just say that these awards are very well deserved for both Julia and Abbey,” MSU women’s golfhead coach Charlie Ewing said. “Julia has earned everything that has come her way this season. She is a special player, and she is every bit as good of a teammate as she is a golfer, and she’s ob- viously a world-class golfer. (Julia) has embraced a leadership role this season, and she’s always one of the first to encourage, support, and celebrate her teammates when they have success or when they are down. We are all just so proud of Julia and Abbey, and they are tremendous assets to our program.”
Lopez Ramirez, who became the first Bulldog to be chosen the women’s golf SEC Freshman of the Year, shined from the moment she stepped on the course in a Mississippi State uniform. In her collegiate debut at the Sam Golden Invite, Lopez Ramirez shattered the Wildhorse Golf Club course record, carding a 63 (9-under par) third round to tie for first place. She set three new Bulldog records in her debut, posting the lowest individual round (9-under par), lowest score after 54 holes (14-under par), and lowest third-round individual score (9-under par).
Lopez Ramirez shined again in the spring opener, breaking the record for the lowest opening (secondlowest individual) round in school history with an 8-under par performance. After 36 holes, Lopez Ramirez had broken the school record for the lowest score after two rounds (13-under par), and after the third round, she broke the lowest score after 54 holes with a score of 16-under par to capture her second tournament title.
In the next event, Lopez Ramirez won her second-straight, third overall crown, carding three rounds in the 60s and shooting 11-under par. Her individual title helped lead Mississippi State to the team championship at the Westbrook Invitational and the first team and individual title in the same event since 2014.
Lopez Ramirez led the SEC in Weekly honors throughout the season as she was selected as the SEC Golfer of the Week and SEC Freshman of the Week twice. Lopez Ramirez led all SEC freshmen in wins (three) and stroke average (70.59) throughout her freshman campaign.
Daniel was selected to represent Mississippi State on the SEC’S Community Service Team. Throughout the 2021-2022 season, Daniel never hesitated to lend a hand in helping the Starkville community. In her efforts, Daniel set out to reach all aspects of her local community.
Daniel spent time at Montgomery Gardens, a senior center located in Starkville, leading arts and crafts throughout the day while also participating in “Dawg Duty,” at a local middle school where she helped greet children as they were dropped off for school and later joined them for lunch. On Martin Luther
King Jr. Day 2022, Daniel joined a group that organized and cleaned the local boys and girls club. To help the surrounding community, Daniel partnered with an animal shelter in West Point. To walk and bathe dogs. Daniel also helped organize an athletic clothing drive to help provide athletic clothing to those in need. Daniel also sought to help out fellow peers, tutoring underclassmen at Mississippi State in the science department during finals week.
Mississippi State, which qualified for the NCAA Championships with its top four finish at the Tallahassee Regional on May 11, will be back on the course May 2025 in Scottsdale, Ariz., to compete for a national championship.