By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural had ruled the city's girls golf roost for a full decade, but Monday's city tournament belonged to Hayden and Topeka High senior Avery Zimmerman, who earned the team and individual championships at Western Hills.
Hayden girls golf poses for a team picture after winning the city girls golf championship by a 322-335 margin over Washburn Rural Monday at Western Hills. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Topeka High senior Avery Zimmerman won the city girls golf title Monday at Western Hills on the first playoff hole. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Hayden halted Washburn Rural's run of 10 straight city team titles by a 322-335 margin over the Junior Blues while Zimmerman won her first city individual title on the first hole (No. 1) of a sudden death playoff with Hayden sophomore Lauren Borjon after both players carded five-over-par 76s.
Zimmerman will play soccer in college at Emporia State and said Monday's win was a good start towards finishing off her high school golf career with a bang.
Kerry Zimmerman moves in to congratulate daughter Avery Zimmerman after her sudden death win in Monday's city girls golf tournament at Western Hills. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Kerry and Avery Zimmerman exchange a hug after Avery won the city girls golf title in a playoff Monday at Western Hills. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
"I'm so happy,'' Zimmerman said. "It just feels like all my hard work is finally playing off and I didn't have the best round last week so this week having a good round just makes me really happy. This is one of the most important ones.''
Zimmerman, who was playing the first playoff of her career, hit her drive right down the middle just short of the green, chipped on and two-putted for par to close out her win.
"I was really nervous, but I was also confident going into (the playoff),'' Zimmerman said. "I just wanted to hit a good drive and then let my short game do the work from there.
"I had a rough patch right in the middle (of the round) and I had to bounce back from that but after that I just had to get in the right head space and things started going really good.''
Borjon got herself in trouble off the tee on the playoff hole, going right and behind a tree which prevented her from having a clear approach to the green on her second shot. Borjon then ended up in the sand trap on her second shot, which opened the door wide open for Zimmerman.
"Getting behind the tree was definitely hard,'' Borjon said. "(Coach) helped with that. I would have definitely hit the tree if he wasn't there.''
And while she would have loved to have won the individual title, Borjon was happy overall with how she played and thrilled with the team's performance.
Hayden sophomore Lauren Borjon blasts out of the sand trap on the first playoff hole in Monday's city golf tournament. Borjon shot a 76 and finished second, helping lead the Wildcats to the team title. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
"It was definitely fun,'' Borjon said. "We're definitely getting a lot better. I felt pretty good. My putting was a little rough at some points but I think I bounced back and did good.
"As a team we're doing very well. Practices are going really well.''
Borjon's playoff loss was about the only thing that went wrong for Jayson Duncan's Hayden team on Monday as the Wildcats put all of their top four players in the top five of the city standings.
Hayden sophomore Izzy Glotzbach carded an 81 to place third in the city meet while senior Hannah Reynoldson finshed fourth with an 82 and senior Avery Grunert tied for fifth with an 83.
Junior Addyson Baer and senior Kyleigh Johnson rounded out Hayden's lineup, with Baer carding a 93 and Johnson a 96.
"A fantastic day for Hayden and the program,'' Duncan said. "A tribute to Jared (Goehring, Rural coach) and what he's done with Washburn Rural. I don't think they've ever lost, and for us to beat them, we had talked about it last year that that might be something we look forward to if we ever had the opportunity and the girls were outstanding today.
"We've been practicing really well and we want to play our best golf here in about a month, or three weeks, but if you don't know what good golf feels like then you don't know what you're getting into, so this is going to be a stepping stone for us. It's not going to be our season, but it's a good victory right in the middle of it.''
Washburn Rural put five players in the top 10 in the city tournament, led by seniors Olivia Smith and Raegan Petersen, who tied for fifth with 83s.
Junior Natalie Peterson finished eighth with an 84 while junior Reece Randall was ninth with an 85 and freshman Kailyn Petersen 10th with an 86.
"It's a deep city this year with a bunch of girls that any given day can have a good round and that was the difference today,'' Goehring said. "Hayden's got a nice team and coach Duncan does a nice job. Man, they played well today, so tip your hats to them.
"Our low all year's been 335, but it just wasn't meant to be today on this golf course.''
Rural junior Colbey Stead shot an 87 to tie for 11th along with Seaman sophomore Makenna Stuke and Viking senior Avery Samuelson.
Actually, Hayden won a pair of titles on Monday, with the Junior Blues also winning the championship in the 12-school Topeka West Invitational, which was held in conjunction with the city meet, by a 322-333 margin over Blue Valley West.
Blue Valley junior Hadley Neese won the Topeka West Invitational title by three shots with a 73.
CITY TOURNAMENT
At Western Hills
Team scores
Hayden 322, Washburn Rural 335, Seaman 357, Shawnee Heights 400, Topeka High 471.
Individual results
1. Avery Zimmerman, Topeka High, 76 (won playoff); 2. Lauren Borjon, Hayden, 76; 3. Izzy Glotzbach, Hayden, 81; 4. Hannah Reynoldson, Hayden, 82; 5. (tie) Olivia Smith, Washburn Rural; Avery Grunert, Hayden, and Raegan Petersen, Washburn Rural; 83; 8. Natalie Peterson, Washburn Rural, 84; 9. Reece Randall, Washburn Rural, 85; 10. Kailyn Petersen, Washburn Rural, 86.
Other Hayden -- Addyson Baer 93, Kyleigh Johnson 96,
Other Washburn Rural -- Colbey Stead 87.
Seaman -- Makenna Stuke 87, Avery Samuelson 87, Jaycee Zimmerman 91, Riley Adams 92, Anna McLaughlin 93, Kaitlynn Frye 96.
Shawnee Heights -- Karlyn Bowman 95, Gracie Langston 99, Jaccyn Bugg 100, Lauryn Valdivia 106, Lyla Blair 110.
Other Topeka High -- Molina Quintana 113, Haley Custenborder 120, Madison Bernal 132.
Topeka West -- Alex Baxter 100, Berlyn Kolean 115.
TOPEKA WEST INVITATIONAL
At Western Hills
Team scores
Hayden 322, Blue Valley West 333, Washburn Rural 335, Blue Valley 344, Seaman 357, Blue Valley Southwest 366, Blue Valley Northwest 396, Shawnee Heights 400, Emporia 405, Junction City 413, Topeka High 441.
Individual results
1. Hadley Neese, Blue Valley, 73; 2. (tie) Avery Zimmerman, Topeka High, and Lauren Borjon, Hayden, 76; 4. Mia Rodriguez, Blue Valley West, 77; Elise Eckert, Emporia, 78; 6. Izzy Glotzbach, Hayden, 81; 7. (tie) Hannah Reynoldson, Hayden, and Caroline Tenpenny, Blue Valley, 82; 9. (tie) Olivia Smith, Washburn Rural; Avery Grunert, Hayden; Aleah Misemer, Blue Valley West, and Raegan Petersen, Washburn Rural; 83.
