CAPE GIRARDEAU聽鈥 Ashtynn Zuniga knew she had it in her.
The Parkway South freshman made the state cut at the Class 4 District 1 tournament by just three strokes, but she made the most of her first chance at state when she carded an 8-over-par 81 in Monday鈥檚 first round of the Class 4 girls golf championship at Dalhousie Golf Club.
鈥淚 had a really good practice round, so I felt confident coming in and it showed on the course,鈥 Zuniga said.
That practice round Sunday also showed Patriots coach Adam Weiss that his young duffer had what it took to hang tough at Dalhousie.
鈥淭he practice round went really, really well. It was the best I鈥檝e seen her hit the ball. But I wasn鈥檛 sure how she was gonna respond to the pressure situation of state,鈥 Weiss said. 鈥淗ow districts went, she definitely felt the pressure there. We just kept talking about how this was all icing on the cake at this point. She made it through the gauntlet of districts and got to state, so she just had to play carefree, and she executed that today.鈥
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Zuniga posted a rather crazy-looking scorecard Monday with five pars and 13 other holes that weren鈥檛 pars.
She started her first state experience with three straight bogeys and then quickly followed that with three straight birdies. She was 2-over at the turn and was still there after 12 holes before four straight bogeys and a double bogey left her at 8-over.
Zuniga then ended in great fashion with a pair of pars to enter Tuesday鈥檚 final round tied for the final all-state (top 15) spot.
鈥淚t was something,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t started off a little rough, but then we picked it back up. It went a little rough again, but then we ended with a par. It鈥檚 very rare that I do that (three straight birdies), but I鈥檓 really happy I did.鈥
Crusaders鈥 Bush leads area contingent
St. Dominic senior Annabelle Bush carded the area鈥檚 best Class 4 score Monday with a round of 4-over 77 that leaves her three shots behind co-leaders Kate Ryan of Tolton and Makenna Casey of Park Hill South heading into the final round.
Bush fired an even-par 36 on the front nine, but she was 4-over on the back, including three bogeys in her final four holes.
鈥淚t started off really well, just kind of staying composed and calming my nerves down,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 definitely struggled a little on the back, so I鈥檓 hoping (Tuesday) I can clear some of that up.鈥
Four locals tied at four shots back
Five players are tied for fifth place at 5-over 78, four strokes back of the lead, with four of those five players hailing from the area.
Visitation senior Avery McLaughlin was 4-over at the turn but finished the back nine at just 1-over, including birdies on each of the final two holes to give her some strong momentum heading into the final round.
鈥淚 would say it was a little rocky, but I came back at the end and just tried to stay consistent,鈥 said McLaughlin, a Richmond commit. 鈥淚 know what I need to work on and I know what I need to practice, but I think mainly it鈥檚 just consistency out there. I鈥檓 a senior and I鈥檓 gonna try to take in the moments.鈥
Francis Howell senior Hannah Mottert was consistent in compiling her 78 with matching 39s on each nine.
鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 my best; it wasn鈥檛 my worst. I鈥檓 hoping for a little better (Tuesday), but I can鈥檛 complain,鈥 said Mottert, who is committed to play golf at Central Missouri. 鈥淚 think (the course) played tough. The greens were rolling really fast, and it was just playing tough for everyone.鈥
St. Joseph鈥檚 teammates Cammi Yelton and Tess Guignon were the other two locals at 78 to lead the way for the Angels.
Yelton was 5-over after her first nine holes, but she was even-par on the back nine, which tended to be the tougher nine for many of the other players.
鈥淭he front nine, I definitely made a few mistakes that I can improve on (Tuesday), but the back nine I played really well,鈥 said Yelton, who is a junior. 鈥淚t took me a while to figure out my putting, that鈥檚 for sure.鈥
Like her teammate, Guignon also had a strong back nine with a 2-over.
鈥淚t was my goal to finish off better than I started,鈥 the Angels sophomore said. 鈥淢y approach shots were really good and I putted really great, but I could have had better irons.鈥
Viz duo sits five shots off pace
Another pair of teammates were fit to be tied Monday, as Viz senior Reese Robson and sophomore Annie Rothery each carded a 6-over 79 to come in five shots behind the leaders.
Robson was pleased with her opening-round effort.
鈥淚 feel pretty good,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 think I stayed pretty consistent in my round and didn鈥檛 let anything bother me or get too high or low. I think I did a good job hitting my fairways and just staying consistent there, not letting too many get away from me.鈥
Rothery said her chipping was her first-round strong suit, helping her save par and she chipped one in for birdie as well.
鈥淚 thought overall it was pretty good,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 felt like I was scrambling a couple times, but I dug deep and I felt like it came out as a score that I鈥檓 really proud of.鈥
Lancers鈥 Surber in top 15 again
Lafayette senior Addy Surber has achieved all-state (top 15) status in each of her first three seasons as a Lancer and she is back in that position again after an opening round 7-over 80 that featured three straight bogeys on the three holes preceding her final one and left her in a tie for 13th.
鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 too happy at the end of the round, but I did the best I could. I never doubled, so I was proud of myself about that,鈥 Surber said. 鈥淚 just had silly mistakes here and there and I missed a ton of birdie putts. That was probably the most frustrating thing. But I鈥檓 gonna practice and come back (Tuesday).鈥
Two more in the top 15
Zuniga and Lindbergh senior Reese Reinhardt are among four players who are just on the plus side of the all-state cut after Day 1 with matching 81s.
Reinhardt started on the back with a 42 before lowering that to 39 on her final nine holes.
鈥淭he back was playing a little bit longer than the front, so I had a little bit longer approach shots here and there,鈥 she said. 鈥淏ut honestly where the bogeys and two double-bogeys came from was putting. I was able to turn it around on the front nine and sank a few more putts.鈥
Vivettes lead strong area team showing
Defending Class 4 champion Viz compiled a team score of 318 to hold the lead after the first day of competition at Dalhousie.
鈥淥verall, lots to proud of today,鈥 Vivettes coach Julie Jones said. 鈥淭hey鈥檒l tell you they left a few out there, but I think everybody did. The golf course is tough. I鈥檓 always thrilled to see three girls under 80.鈥
St. Joe鈥檚, which finished second to Viz last season after a string of seven straight state titles, is second after the opening round this season with a 329, a symmetrical 11 shots out of first place and 11 shots ahead of third.
鈥淭o be only (11) strokes down is not too bad for how we played,鈥 Angels coach Carol Fromuth said. 鈥淚鈥檓 disappointed that we didn鈥檛 play better, but we鈥檙e very definitely still in this race.鈥
Howell finished third in Class 4 last season, and the Vikings sit third again after an opening-round 340.
鈥淚 think that the course itself presented more challenges than maybe we had seen throughout the season,鈥 Howell coach Jason Ruth said. 鈥淭he bunker placement and the speed of the greens and the flags on the back nine proved to be a challenge for everybody out here. I think they grinded well and just tried to put together the best round they could knowing that tomorrow is a new day.鈥
St. Dominic, which won the Class 3 title last year and moved up to Class 4 this year, shot 345 to sit just three strokes behind fourth-place Raymore-Peculiar.
鈥淒efinitely winning state last year was so much fun for us,鈥 Bush said. 鈥淲e just came back and didn鈥檛 really set the expectations that we have to win, but we know every shot counts and we have faith in the team that everybody is gonna be just fine.鈥