Center Grove’s Magnolia Miller hits out of a greenside bunker during Friday’s opening round of the state finals at Prairie View Golf Club.
Rob Baker | For the Daily Journal
Even by Prairie View standards, Friday was a difficult day for the girls playing the first round of the IHSAA state finals, with scores pretty inflated across the board.
Both Franklin and Center Grove came into the tournament with visions of a top-four team finish and a spot on the podium, and despite some challenges, both remain within range of that goal.
The Grizzly Cubs finished the day in fifth place at 40 over par, just one stroke behind Hamilton Southeastern for fourth and two back of third-place Westfield. The Trojans are lurking in seventh at 53 over.
Noblesville (+22) leads the field, with Zionsville five shots behind.
Individually, Center Grove senior Magnolia Miller was the top player on Friday, shooting a 2-over-par 74 to end the day in a three-way tie for fourth place. Three other players — Floyd Central’s Paige Giovenco, Westfield’s Addi Kooi and Zionsville’s Taylor Snively, came in at even par.
Franklin was balanced at the top, with Lexi Ray shooting 77, Reese Phillips 79 and Addi Bright 80; all three are 24th or better on the individual leaderboard. Cassidy Rucker rounded out the Grizzly Cubs’ team scoring with a 92.
Phillips shot even par on the back nine after making the turn at +7.
Behind Miller, Center Grove got an 85 from London Dodson, an 89 from Zoe Land and a 93 from Olivia Alvey.
The Trojans will play Saturday’s final round with eighth-place Carmel and ninth-place South Bend St. Joseph; Franklin will be paired with Batesville, just as it was during Monday’s regional, and HSE.
