Lady Eagles confident heading into state tournament

Taking third place at the Division I-A Southern Region Tournament last week at Mountain Falls Golf Course, the Lady Eagles clinched a berth in the state tournament, held Wednesday at Boulder Creek Golf Course.

"The region tournament was a great warm up for the girls," Boulder City head coach Andrew Schaper said. "Faith Lutheran and Clark have some good players, so It was good for the Lady Eagles to see what the level of competition will be like in the state tournament."

Finishing with a team score of 423, the Lady Eagles trailed only Division I-A Sunset powers Faith Lutheran (310) and Clark (385) on the day.

"We finished third at the region event but will have to play much better to finish third or better at state," Schaper added. "Our chipping and putting needs to improve for the girls to be in contention for the state title."

Placing fifth on the day for the Lady Eagles was sophomore Lani Potter who shot an 81 on the par-72 course. Making strides in her game for a possible individual state championship, Potter knows she'll have to play her best in order to beat the Faith Lutheran trio of Sydney Smith (score of 72), Morgan Goldstein (72) and Cameron Griffin (80) and Clark's Grace Kang (77).

"The competition is certainly tough this year, but I like my chances on our home course," Potter said. "I know this course very well and I feel comfortable playing on it. I'm hopeful to finish near the top."

Placing 13th and 14th, respectively, at regionals were freshmen Madisan Walker and junior Lauryn Norris, who have been Potter's main two complements this season. Walker shot a 104 on the day, just four strokes off of 10th place finisher Josie Delgadillo from Moapa Valley, while Norris tied with Elaine Chu for 14th place with a score of 112.

"Everyone has done a great job coming together this year," Norris said, who's in her third year with the Lady Eagles. "Being that our last match is on our home course, I expect everyone to have a great match and end the year strong."

Concluding the girls' match at the region tournament were freshman Ryann Reese with a score of 126 and junior Holly Pipper with a 134.

Focusing their attention to their early season goal of a state tournament appearance, multiple members of this year's team feel confident heading into the tournament that has eluded the Lady Eagles since their 2010 state championship.

"This is our first tournament run in a few years, so I'm very excited to get out there," Potter added. We've all been improving each week throughout the season, so I'm excited to see how we all do. I think we're going to be great competitors out there and continue to improving in the coming seasons for more hopeful tournament appearances."

In order for the Lady Eagles to be competitive throughout the state tournament, they'll need their newcomer Walker and veteran Norris to continue to play at their best on the state's brightest stage.

"Coming in, I'm a little nervous but also excited," Walker said. "I know this course very well, so luckily that takes some of the pressure off myself and I can just go out there and play."

A calmer Norris took Walker's comments a step further, saying she's confident not only in her ability but the team's ability to execute after a wonderful season.

"We've all made strides and I'm confident we'll all play our best matches at state." Norris added. "We've all had our low scores on this course, so as a team I like our chances. We know how to get through the course and where exactly to hit our balls. I like our advantage."

Content on how their season had played out, coach Schaper although hopeful of a state championship stated that now matter the outcome, he's proud of the way his team has progressed this season.

"We look forward to hosting the Division I-A state tournament and hope that our home course advantage will help bring home an individual or team title," Schaper said. Regardless the girls have worked hard all season. Where ever we finish, I am very proud of them and I am excited for the future of Boulder City golf."

The results of Wednesday's state tournament were not available at press time. Results from yesterday's match have been posted on Bouldercityreview.com, and a full recap will appear in next weeks issue.

Contact Robert Vendettoli at BCRsports@gmail.com.