Fourth-ranked Center Grove wasn’t at full strength on Wednesday, but even a reduced version of the Trojans squad is downright formidable.
Minus two starters, coach Cale Hoover’s team nonetheless captured the program’s third consecutive Johnson County girls golf tournament at The Legends Golf Club in Franklin.
Center Grove took care of business with a score of 312, downing runner-up Franklin, the state’s 10th-ranked squad, by 18 strokes. Whiteland finished play a distant third with a 415, followed by Greenwood’s 422.
Hoover, who watched four of his five players break 80, couldn’t help but be satisfied with how his team performed.
“I think we had a little bit of adversity this week. (Tuesday) night at 9 o’clock someone finds out they’re playing in the tournament today,” Hoover said. “All things considered, with four scores in the 70s, which we’ve never done at this course before, everybody kept their composure.
“If we had a bad hole, we recovered. I’m really pleased.”
Sophomore Lexi Stuart carded the Trojans’ low score with a 76, finishing one stroke behind medalist Ava Ray of Franklin. Camille Short had a 78, Lanie DeHaven and Natalie Wilson shot matching 79s and junior Haidyn Brooks added an 85.
Stuart, who started on hole No. 2 in the shotgun start, began with a double bogey but remained steady the rest of the way.
“I hadn’t played The Legends in a while, but I am really happy with my score,” said Stuart, who had her short game working most of the round. “I actually had to make a 15-foot (putt) to save par on the very last hole to shoot 76.
“I would say my putting and chipping was pretty good today.”
Ray, the Grizzly Cubs’ No. 1 player and lone senior, took medalist honors at county for the first time in her prep career. Given the heavy rains that soaked the course earlier in the day, hers was a score she feels could have been lower.
“With the storm coming in right before the match, we were all a little bit nervous about the ground being wet,” Ray said. “When we got out there, it wasn’t too bad. Ted (Bishop) has the course in really good condition, so personally, I feel I could’ve done a lot better.
“It’s really frustrating to miss the short putts that could have gotten me lower, but I’ve been working on my swing a lot lately. My goal today was just to go out and hit a lot of greens, and I really did on the front nine. I didn’t hit as many on the back, but I still made that a priority for myself.”
Franklin’s Reese Phillips posted a 78 to earn a spot on the six-person all-tournament team.
Tara Watson and Chloe Cooper shot 96 and 98, respectively, to lead Whiteland; Greenwood senior Maura Guilfoy finished with an 83. The final three team scores were Greenwood Christian (478), Edinburgh (481) and Indian Creek (501).
