Wawasee's Mawhorter ties for 2nd, advances to state finals
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Dale Hubler-dhubler@timesuniononline.com
KENDALLVILLE – A dozen locals competed in Saturday's girls regional at Noble Hawk Golf Links in Kendallville. Despite some career-best performances, only one of them was fortunate enough to qualify for this weekend's 36-hole state finals at Prairie View Golf Club in Carmel. Shooting a 75 on the par-70 course, Wawasee High School senior Mikala Mawhorter turned in the best score of her prep career and the second-best score among the 108 participants and qualified for the state finals as an individual. The Lady Warriors, who returned four players from last year's state finalist team, shot a four-person score of 340 and finished fifth among the 18 teams. Manchester finished 17th with a team score of 428. Competing individually, Warsaw's Madi Graham shot a career-best 80 and missed the cut by three strokes, while Tippecanoe Valley's Victoria Biddle, shooting a career-best for the third straight week, carded an 89. The top three teams, as well as the top five individuals not on an advancing team, qualified for the state finals, which are slated for Friday and Saturday. Mawhorter’s round included a double-bogey, five bogeys and two birdies. She shot 39 on the front side and 36 on the back. “Smooth, that’s the word I’m going with,” said Mawhorter. “Since the sectional and regional now, every time I went up to address the ball, I told myself ‘smooth, smooth, don’t kill it, don’t kill it, because if you try it’s gonna go bad.’ I did have some bad shots today, really bad shots, but I ended up making it out OK.” Other scores for the Lady Warriors, who won last the sectional at Stonehenge the previous week with a 332, included Aubrey Schmeltz’s 82, Kylee Rostochak’s 89, Madison Beaman’s 94 and Kamryn Foy’s 96. “We played well today,” said Wawasee coach Steve Coverstone. “It was a tough golf course. Scores were good ... I mean, I thought 340 would give us a chance to get out. “Mikala played really well for us. We had a great year, 16-1 (record), we’re sectional champions, that’s something they can take with them forever. We would have liked to make it out, but as it turns out we were 11 shots out.” Penn, led by individual medalist Cassidy Jurkaites’ stellar round of 71, won the team title with a 315. NorthWood finished second at 325, followed by Leo and Homestead at 329. Leo advanced to state by virtue of a better fifth-player score. Following fifth-place Wawasee in the top 10 were Bishop Dwenger (348), Carroll (352), Bellmont (353), Plymouth (357) and Snider (364). Advancing to state as individuals are Mawhorter, Norwell’s Amber Nelson (75), Rochester’s Kinley Lingenfelter (75), Dwenger’s Sarah Frazier (76) and South Adams’ Sydney Willis (77). For Manchester, Kelsey Eichenauer led the way with a 97, while Leiah Brandenburg shot 104, followed by Lydia Little’s 112, Madyson Ulrey’s 115 and Madison Hire’s 129. “I’m pretty happy,” said Manchester coach Josh Troyer. “For us being so young, I don’t think I really had an expectation. We talked all year about just trying to improve. Didn’t get to that today, but they battled. They gave it their all, they cared. I want it to sink into them how good they could be. I sensed that today. They’re itching for next year already.” Graham, Warsaw’s standout junior, beat her previous career-best score by five shots. She shot an 85 at Noble Hawk earlier this year. “I like that it’s so different,” Graham said when asked why Noble Hawk suits her so well. “There’s areas that you can get into trouble, but there’s also areas that you can set yourself up for a good shot.” Asked what it meant to her that she shot her best score on the biggest stage she’s ever been on, Graham said, “It shows what I could do next year. It’s encouraging.” First-year Warsaw coach Tad Nieter was certainly encouraged by what he saw from Graham Saturday. “It’s five strokes better than her best score, in the biggest tournament she’s ever played in,” said Nieter. “The way she pulled it together on the back nine, birdieing the last hole to shoot 80, that’s awesome. “I kept telling her dad how pumped I am for next year, because if she really committed herself it’s crazy how low she could go next year. Why not be thinking of state for her next year? She’s catching the bug, and I like that about her. She’s just a competitor.” En route to her 89, Biddle shot 46 on the front side and 43 on the back. The Valley player’s previous best score was 95, which she shot in the sectional at Stonehenge.
EAST NOBLE REGIONAL (Noble Hawk Golf Links (Kendallville), par 70) Note - top three team, as well as top five players not on an advancing team, qualify for state finals. Team Scores – Penn 315, NorthWood 325, Leo 329, Homestead 329, Wawasee 340, Dwenger 348, Caroll 352, Bellmont 353, Plymouth 357, Snider 364, St. Joe 372, Southwood 377, South Adams 382, Huntington North 385, Columbia City 385, East Noble 386, Manchester 428, Elkhart Central 433 Top 5 – Cassiday Jurkaites (Penn) 71, Mikala Mawhorter (Wawasee) 75, Amber Nelson (Norwell) 75, Kinley Lingenfelter (Rochester) 75, Sarah Frazier (Dwenger) 76, Anna Feldman (Leo) 76 Advancing Individuals – Mikala Mawhorter (Wawasee) 75, Amber Nelson (Norwell) 75, Kinley Lingenfelter (Rochester) 75, Sarah Frazier (Dwenger) 76, Sydney Willis (S. Adams) 77 Local Individuals – Madi Graham (Warsaw) 80, Victoria Biddle (T. Valley) 89 Wawasee – Mikala Mawhorter 75, Aubrey Schmeltz 82, Kylee Rostochak 89, Madison Beaman 94, Kamryn Foy 96 Manchester – Kelsey Eichenauer 97, Leiah Brandenburg 104, Lydia Little 112, Madyson Ulrey 115, Madison Hire 129
