Jenks overcomes rainy conditions to repeat as Class 6A girls golf state champion

By Mike Moguin 

Photo of Jenks girls golf team by Jenks Public Schools Facebook page; from left, head coach Vicki Hughes, sophomore Bella Negley, junior Isabelle Suttle, freshman Lisa Herman, individual state champion, senior Lily Stanton, sophomore Sophia Lefler, and assistant Mike Gaines 

TULSA - Jenks overcame another rainy day to capture its second straight Class 6A girls state golf championship Thursday at Meadowbrook Country Club in Tulsa.

The Lady Trojans had to make a few more shots in the second 18 holes than it did in Wednesday’s first round, but so did the other 11 teams competing in the field, most likely due to the weather. Jenks finished with (303-311) 614 shots on the Par-72, 5,168-yard course.

“It is truly exciting. To go back-to-back, that is not an easy feat in any sport,” Jenks coach Vicki Hughes said. “I’m very happy for the girls because they’ve really worked hard all season. That was one of our goals and we were able to reach that goal.”

Edmond North was runner-up (327-341) with 668 swings and Edmond Memorial placed third, recording (329-341) 670.

There was concern if round two of the tournament would be played Thursday when thunderstorms hit the area early in the morning when tee times were originally scheduled.

Eventually, all teams were able to tee off at 9 a.m.

The Lady Trojans won last week’s East Regional in Ponca City in similar light rainy weather conditions. It was also an issue at last year’s state tournament, Hughes noted.

“It seems like it never fails when it gets to the playoff time, which I know it’s the time of the year and time of the month (for rain),” she said. “But last year, we played in the rain at Lincoln West (in Oklahoma City) and we had a four-hour delay.”

But the winning coach pointed out a plus side to playing in the rain.

“It shows the character between not just my team, but all girls out here in general,” Hughes said. “It’s hard to do. You got to be tough and I feel like all these girls out there, not just the Trojans, but everybody, played well.

"It’s not easy to go out there and play in mud and rain. Everything gets wet.”

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Freshman Lisa Herman once again won as the top individual medalist, marking her eighth consecutive tournament victory, yet her first state championship. This sets up the opportunity for her to be a four-time state champion.

“It is just amazing,” Herman said. “It is obviously unreal. It is just great to be able to do this with my team and everyone.

“(On Wednesday) I was trying to keep one hole at a time, just trying to stay focused in the moment. (Thursday) I was just trying to stay dry. Like, I needed to keep my hands dry, my gloves dry, my club dry, my towels dry, everything needed to stay dry and it was honestly really hard.”

Lucy Darr of Stillwater took home the silver medal by shooting (76-75) 151, and Syrah Javed of Norman North placed third with (76-76) 152.

Contributing to the Jenks effort was senior Lily Stanton, who took fourth after carding (75-79) 154, and sophomore Sophia Lefler, who logged (79-78) 157, to finish fifth, and junior Isabella Suttle, who tied for seventh, with a scoring effort of (79-83) 162.

Rounding out the top 10 was Julianna Hong of Norman North (78-80–158), Emma Fields of Bixby (81-81–162), who tied Suttle for seventh, and Natalie Purvis of Edmond North (80-83–163) and Jaeya Mathis of Westmoore (83-80–163), both tying for ninth.

Hughes was certainly happy for Herman’s accomplishment.

“It makes her eighth straight first-place medalist finish. I’m very excited. She is very deserving,” Hughes said. “The girl works harder than probably anybody that I know. She works at her game.

"I’m very happy, I’m very pleased, we’re tickled to death to have her on our team. She’s a very good part of our Trojan program.”

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Herman does have plans to play in some junior golf tournaments this summer.

The Lady Trojans were also recognized, along with Southmoore and Bartlesville, as the academic champions during the awards ceremony at the conclusion of the tournament, which took place in the banquet room due to the weather.

One highlight of the day came from Owasso’s Brooklyn Williams as she hit a hole-in-one on the 14th hole. Her accomplishment was also recognized during the award ceremony.

State Girls Golf Roundup

Class 5A

Midwest City Carl Albert trailed by 10 shots after the first round of the state tournament and was in third place, behind Duncan and Bishop Kelley, going into the final 18 holes of play. But the Lady Titans came roaring back on day two, to win the state tournament by one shot against Duncan.

Carl Albert finished with a round of 659 and Duncan finished with a 660. Bishop Kelley finished third with a 678. JJ Gregston from Duncan claimed the individual title, with a final score of 140.

Class 4A

Ada claimed the Class 4A state title in another close finish, winning by two strokes against Bishop McGuinness. Ada finished with a team score of 669 and McGuinness finished with a score of 671.

Even though the Fighting Irish came in second, two golfers finished first and second for the individual title. Abbie Justiz finished with a 151 and she beat her sister, Allie, by one shot.

Class 3A

It was a close leaderboard after the first 18 holes of play, but Marlow played some outstanding golf to win the state tournament by 14 strokes, with a final score of 721. It held off three private schools in Christian Heritage Academy, Heritage Hall, and Holland Hall, who carded top four finishes in that order.

Meredith Reid from Kingston fired a terrific round of 73 in her second 18 holes of golf, to win the individual state title by three shots.

Class 2A

Turner continues to dominate Class 2A, as they won the state tournament by 153 strokes. The Lady Falcons finished with a 604, making it their third straight championship win. Jaci Hartman from Turner won the state tournament, with a score of 140, which included a fabulous 69 in her first 18 holes.

All four girls from Turner finished top four in the state, as Josi Cavitt carded a 143 to lead the way. Braylee Foster scored a 159 and Hope Hill finished with a 162. Turner’s fifth golfer, Hadley Hill, also recorded a top 10 finish, with a score of 171.