Maconaquah Schools

On Thursday evening the Lady Braves that make up the Maconaquah Girls Golf team participated in the inaugural Leaning Tree Girls Golf Invitational and came away as the big winners for the night. Four Lady Braves came away with individual medals and the team as a whole came away with medals and a winners plaque. After an opening ceremony with honorary starter Air Force Colonel Arianne Mayberry greeting each player individual the invitational got underway. Invitational Medalist was Maconaquah senior Daisy Williams. Daisy had her usually game of solid shots and clutch putts that left her two over after seven holes. Daisy showed why she has been a three time TRC champion and state qualifier on her last two holes. After hitting the front part of the green on the par three 8th hole, Daisy’s putt found the bottom of the cup for a birdie two. Following that birdie, Daisy hit a tremendous drive on the par five 9th hole, leaving her just over a 110 yards to the green. She hit a excellent second shot and was able to finish with a second birdie in a row. Her stellar finish led to an even par 36 score. Sophomore Aubrey Stoll was Daisy’s closest competition for medalist honors as she finished with a 39 which earned her second place overall. Aubrey got off to a rough start after three putting her first hole (the 7th) and missed the green on the 8th hole to the left. She hit a tremendous chip on 8 and save her par. That up and down seemed to fire her up a bit as she then proceeded to birdied the next hole (the 9th) and then hit a tremendous drive on her fourth hole. Aubrey, who had never shot below 40 in a high school match, sank a difficult putt on her last hole to secure her 39 and second place medal. Senior Finley Dobbs was third on the Lady Braves with a 51. Finley had a rough start to her match as she started triple bogey-par-triple bogey. A younger golfer may have mentally folded at that point, but Finley showed the grit that has made her an asset to the varsity team for the past three seasons as she refocused and grinded out her 51. Based on this comeback, and additional effort at practice, it’s easy to foresee her playing very well at TRC on Saturday. Sophomore Delaney Duke had a similar start to Finley and showed similar grit in finishing with a 54. She hit a tremendous opening drive, but her second short stopped just under a tree and she had to punch out. She chipped on the green and then three putted. She then had some trying moments on the next two holes. Much like Finley she got on track with two tremendous shots on her fourth hole and finished fourth on the team in scoring. Sophomore Emma Bond played steady golf all evening. She hit the ball well off the tee and hit solid iron shots. She had a bit of trouble on the greens but she kept her spirits high and finished with a 57. Overall the Lady Braves won the title with a final score of 180. Tippecanoe Valley was second with 200 and North Miami third with 202. There were also junior varsity medals awarded to two Lady Braves. Freshman Delaney Farnham finished second overall with a personal best 61. She has put a lot of effort into her game the past few weeks and the results were apparent on Thursday. Fellow Freshman Emma Morris, who has tremendous potential as a varsity player next year, finished third in the junior varsity field with a 64. Junior Jade Chrisopher hit the ball well, but had some very unfortunate breaks when good chips ran long on her. Her final tally of 67 left her just outside winning a medal. The Lady Braves are back in action this Saturday at the Three Rivers Conference Championship at Rock Hollow. As always the Lady Braves appreciate all the parents, family and friends that come out and support the Lady Braves each match. A very special thank you to Leaning Tree golf course for putting on a tremendous event for the lady golfers. Invitational chairman Jay Hullinger put together a great experience for the players. Lastly thank you to Air Force Colonel Arianne Mayberry for being the starter and Stan Truax and his Leaning Tree Staff for all that they did. PHOTOS: Winning Varsity Team*. The Lady Braves Golf Team along with coachies Tait Wagner and Tim Cox*. Starter Colonel Mayberry, Committee Chair Hullinger and Leaning Tree’s Stank Truax *Photo credit Steve and Polly Dobbs