No. 1 rankings, top 10 finishes in the NCAA Championship, Auburn and Kim Evans all go hand in hand. Evans, who led the Tigers to five SEC Championships, including the 2006 title, was the 2002 NGCA National Coach of the Year as the Tigers amassed an incredible record of 162-7-3 (.951). In the fall of 2005, Golfweek named the Auburn women's program the fourth most successful program in the past five years. Evans, who is in her 14th year at Auburn, led the Tigers to nine consecutive NCAA Championship appearances, including six top-10 finishes with a tie for second in the nation in 2002 and third in 2005. Auburn's five SEC titles under Evans came in 1996, 2000, 2003, 2005 and 2006. Last season, the Tigers found themselves at the top of the rankings all season and turned that into a ninth place finish at the NCAA Championship. Nicole Hage earned All-American honors as Evans has now coached her players to 20 All-America accolades. Hage was also voted first team All-SEC, while Margaret Shirley and Candace Schepperle earned a place on the second team. In addition, C. Schepperle was named SEC Freshman of the Year; Evans fifth newcomer to earn the honor. In 2006, Evans coached the Tigers to a sixth place finish at the NCAA East Region and a 12th place finish at the NCAA Championships. Two players were named All-Americans, and Maria Martinez was named SEC Women's Golfer of the Year. The team tied a school record with five tournament victories, taking first place in the Derby Invitational, The LSU/Cleveland Golf Classic, The Lady Gamecock Classic, The SEC Championship and the Lady Buckeye Invite. In 2005 Evans led the Tigers to the NCAA Central Region title and senior Diana Ramage earned medalist honors in the tournament. Three players were named All-Americans, as well as All-SEC team members in 2005. The Tigers finished the 2002 season ranked No. 1 nationally in Golfweek and were No. 1 in the nation in Golfweek's 2002-03 preseason poll. Evans has coached and helped with the development of nine All-Americans that have earned 20 awards, five SEC Players of the Year and five SEC Freshmen of the Year. Auburn's streak of eight-straight NCAA appearances was the fourth longest stint of any school in the nation at that time. Since 2000, the Tigers have won 23 tournament championships. The 1981 Auburn graduate has turned a once mediocre program into a consistent National Championship contender. In 2004, freshman Nicole Hage won SEC Freshman of the Year honors and was named as the Co-SEC Player of the Year. Along with Hage, Maria Martinez earned first team All-SEC honors. Auburn won three tournaments in 2003 with the SEC Championship, the ACC/SEC Challenge and the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate. Senior Celeste Troche became the first four-time All-American in Tiger history while Danielle Downey was an honorable mention All-American. Troche, Downey and Diana Ramage were all All-SEC first-team selections and Maria Martinez was a second-teamer. Evans led the Tigers to a school-best tie for second in the 2002 NCAA Championship. The Tigers finished the season ranked No. 1 nationally in Golfweek. Courtney Swaim, Troche and Downey each earned All-American honors as Swaim and Troche were first-team selections with Downey on the second team. Evans was named SEC Coach of the Year for the third time in seven seasons while Kingsley Barrett became the third-straight Tiger to claim SEC Freshman of the Year honors. Downey, Swaim and Troche were first-team All-SEC selections while Troche was also selected to the SEC Academic Honor Roll. The Tigers had a then school-best fourth-place finish in the 2001 NCAA Championship. Celeste Troche earned first-team All-America honors and was an Academic All-American and SEC Player of the Year, and Ramage won the Tigers' second consecutive SEC Freshman of the Year award. The Tigers won a school record five tournaments. The Tigers finished sixth in the 2000 NCAA Championship and won the 2000 SEC Championship for the second time in five years. Freshmen Danielle Downey, who won three individual tournaments including the SEC Championship, and Celeste Troche, who was the SEC Freshman of the Year, were both named second-team All-Americans. Both were first-team All-SEC selections and a quartet of Tigers, Kami Smith, Crystal Ferrier, Kimberly Strong and Audrey Fisher, were named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll. The Tigers finished 15th in the 1999 NCAA Championship while Robin Cook was named a second-team All-American for the second straight year. Kami Smith earned Academic All-America honors. Six Tigers were named All-SEC with Cook earning SEC Player of the Year honors. In 1998, the Tigers finished 19th at the NCAA Championship. Cook was named second-team All-American and three Tigers garnered All-SEC honors along with three being named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll. The Tigers finished 13th in the nation in 1997 as the team advanced to the NCAA Championship at the Scarlet Course in Columbus, Ohio. Katie Gallina was named an All-American and the Tigers had four All-SEC selections and two SEC Academic Honor Roll picks. Evans led the Tigers to a 143-36 (.799) record during the 1996-97 season. In 1996, Evans became only the second women's golf coach in Auburn history to be named SEC Coach of the Year and District South Coach of the Year, along with the legendary Bud Marsee. Auburn's 1996 SEC Championship was the school's second ever, the first coming in 1989. Evans also led the Tigers to their first trip to the NCAA Championship in six years in 1996 as the Tigers finished 18th in the country. Marci Clemons was an All-American and won the prestigious Dinah Shore Award and Edith Munson Award. Three Tigers were selected All-SEC and one to the SEC Academic Honor Roll. Evans was formerly an assistant coach for the men's golf team at Georgia Tech from 1988-1994 and the assistant executive director of the Atlanta Junior Golf Association for six years. In 1981, she graduated from Auburn with a Bachelor of Science degree while also lettering for the Tigers from 1978-81. Upon her graduation from Auburn, Evans worked as a golf activity coordinator and golf professional at Sandestin Resort in Destin, Fla., where she obtained her PGA Class A status. Evans has a long list of golf achievements including being on the Board of Directors for "The Alabama First Tee Chapter" in 1999 and is the 3rd Vice-President of the National Golf Coaches Association for 1999-2000. She was awarded the Georgia PGA Junior Golf Leader Award in 1992; was a member of the PGA National Junior Golf Steering Committee from 1992-93; Georgia State Golf Association Advisory Committee, 1992-1994; Georgia Junior Golf Foundation Board of Directors, 1992-1994; Special Olympics Committee for Golf in 1994; and Instructor for the LPGA Mazda Executive Women's Clinic in 1993. She was the guest speaker for the 1990 USGA Women's Regional Workshop and at the AAHPERD Regional Convention in 1993. She spearheaded and directed the "See Jane Build Golf Day" in September 1995 to benefit Habitat for Humanity in Lee County and was selected to the South District Selection Committee for 1995-96. While at Georgia Tech, she was involved in several campus activities such as directing the Georgia Tech Annual Gift Giving, The United Way for four years, the Tournament Coordinator of the Local Contributors Golf Tournament for the NCAA Women's Final Four in 1993 and the Mandy Miller Golf Classic (Women's Basketball Scholarship Endowment Program) for three years. Evans was a co-Director for the "Go For the Gold Twilight Run" (fund raising for women's athletics) in 1991. Evans spends time with many charities and is a member of the Professional Golf Association of America. Among Evans' achievements from the recent past include the creation of the Auburn Tiger Invitational (now named the Auburn Tiger-Derby Invitational after former Auburn golfer and Curtis Cup Champion Virginia-Derby Grimes). She was also instrumental in landing the 1996 NCAA East Regional and 2003 NCAA Championship at Grand National in Opelika, Ala.. "The individuals are the best part of coaching," said Evans of her players. "Of course everybody likes to win. But, when you're dealing with individuals, and they accomplish their goals, we all come together and accomplish our team goals. "When you have quality student-athletes and mix them with the game of golf, I can't see a better combination." Kim Evans Year-by-Year
The Kim Evans File
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