Athens Drive Golf - Generic Graphic
Oct 29, 2008
PINEHURST — As Athens Drive junior Katherine Perry walked off the 18th green on the No. 1 course Tuesday afternoon, her teammates informed her that the Jaguars had just won the NCHSAA 4-A state golf championship — with one caveat.
“If my math was right,” said junior Grace Stallings. “We have math problems on the team.”
When the team made their way from the 18th green to the scoring area and ran the numbers again, Stallings’ calculations were spot on, setting off a round of hugs and quiet celebration.
The Jaguars overcame a five-stroke deficit after Monday’s first round and shot 255 Tuesday to win their first state championship with a score of 511, four strokes better than first-round leader Greensboro Grimsley and 2007 state champion Northwest Guilford.
“I’m so excited,” said Perry, whose back-to-back 78s gave her an eighth place finish in the individual standings. “I just wanted to cry when they came up to me on the green.”
Charlotte Ardrey Kell’s Allison Emery won the individual title with a two-day 151, one stroke ahead of Wakefield’s Courtney McKim, Clayton’s Lizzie Bundy and Gastonia Ashbrook’s Courtney Taylor.
The Jaguars found themselves atop the leaderboard thanks largely to two days of consistent play. In addition to Perry’s 78s, Sydney Shackelford shot 88-87 and Stallings 91-89 for team scores of 256-255 (Mande Monchick shot 92-97, but her scores did not go toward the team’s, as only the top three included). Grimsley’s team score rose from a first-round 251 to a second-round 264, and Northwest Guilford’s dropped from 262 to 253.
In addition to the five-stroke hole Athens faced entering the final round, the entire field had its hands full with a difficult course made even more so by winds that gusted to 30 m.p.h. and temperatures that hovered in the low 50s.
As a result, Tuesday wasn’t so much about moving up the leaderboard as it was about survival and preventing a freefall down it.
“The conditions made it a lot harder, and it wasn’t necessarily who could go low, but who could make one less mistake, one less shot and just really grind it out,” Stallings said. “That’s just what the conditions called for, and we did it.”
The conditions no doubt contributed to the fact that none of the 80 players in the field shot a round under par. In fact, no one came closer than plus-three. With scores rising, Athens coach Tony Alcon said another key to his team’s championship was his players’ ability to leave a bad shot or a bad hole behind them and focus on the one in front of them.
“You can’t do anything about the past, you’ve got to move on, play the next hole,” Alcon said. “It’s easier said than done. They’ve really adjusted to that well. They’re able to leave it, go on and play the next shot.”
Case in point, Shackelford’s performance on holes eight through 11. After closing the front nine triple bogey, bogey, Shackelford made the turn and shot back-to-back pars before getting a birdie on the par 4, 218-yard 11th hole. Shackelford left her drive short of the green, then pulled out a wedge with the hope putting the ball anywhere on the putting surface that might allow her to save par.
“I did a couple practice swings, held my breath and said, ‘Please go somewhere near the hole,’” she said. “The next thing I heard was, ‘Get in the hole! Get in the hole!’ I looked up, and it was maybe two inches from the hole.”
It was one of only two birdies the Jaguars made all day (Stallings had the other on the par 5, 418-yard 17th).
The Jaguars had the championship trophy in their possession for less than a half hour before they started looking ahead to next year. And it’s hard not to blame them. Since they have no seniors, the entire team will be back in hopes of becoming the first repeat 4-A champion since Leesville Road n 2004-05.
“I can’t speak highly enough about all of them,” Alcon said. “It’s a great team, a great bunch of girls. The best thing probably is there’s no seniors on the team. So it’s looking good [next year].”
In addition to the title, the Jaguars also won a bet with their coach. If Athens won the state championship, he agreed to shave his bushy gray beard, something he hasn’t done in nearly 20 years.
“Tomorrow I’ll go into to school, and nobody will know me,” Alcon said.
But his altered appearance will offer only temporary anonymity. As Perry pointed out, when people see his clean-shaven face, “Everyone will know we won.”
McKim comes up just short of repeat
Courtney McKim’s 2007 state championship marked the fifth straight year the NCHSAA 4-A individual champion was not a senior. None of the previous four came back and won a second title, a fate McKim hoped to avoid this week in Pinehurst.
She came up just short. After an opening-round 75 left her tied for the lead through 18 holes, MckKim shot five-over 77 Tuesday, which left her in a three-way tie for second, one stroke off the lead.
While it wasn’t the preferable finish, McKim remains one of the more decorated golfers in the state. She was twice the Cap 7 Player of the Year and she won two Mideast Regional championships. She was a four-time state qualifier, with one win and one runner-up finish.
“I have to say that being at Wakefield and being able to represent a high school and being able to walk through the halls and so many people recognize me, and for them to be able to recognize me is something I would dream of and never think would come true,” McKim said. “And to have a state championship, even though I didn’t win it this year, and even though I had a chance, no one can take away that I won it the year before. When you look, you’ll always see my name [in the record book], and that’s something.”
1. Athens Drive 256-265-511
T2. Grimsley 251-264-515
T2. NW Guilford 262-253-515
4. New Bern 260-261-521
5. Pinecrest 260-264-524
6. WF-Rolesville 262-266-528
7. Audrey Kell 274-260-534
8. Wakefield 280-274-554
9. Myers Park 281-278-559
10. Chapel Hill 288-277-565
11. Broughton 279-291-570
12. Butler 286-288-574
13. Green Hope 295-292 587
1. Allison Emrey, Ardrey Kell 76-75-151
T2. Lizzie Bundy, Clayton 77-75-152
T2. Courtney McKim, Wakefield 75-77-152
T2. Courtney Taylor, Ashbrook 75-77-152
4. Tatum Briele, New Bern 78-75-153
T5.Kaie Kirk, North Mecklenburg 75-80-155
T5. Jessica Hook, Ashley 77-78-155
T7. Katherine Perry, Athens Drive78-78-156
T7. Clare Fisher, AC Reynolds 80-77-157
10. Brianna Clemmons, NW Guilford 82-76-158
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