With former head coach Ronnie Williams in attendance and cheering them on, the Greenwood Lady Bulldogs continued their dominance of 5A West conference this past Monday by winning yet another league golf championship for new head coach Ronnie Sockey. The tournament was played in Russellville.
The GHS girls (259) easily surpassed the field, winning by 20 strokes over second place Russellville (279), led by tournament medalist Ella Austin, who fired a conference-best 86 after winning a one-hole playoff over GHS teammate Grace Woody, who also shot an 86.
Besides Austin, a senior, and Woody, a sophomore, fellow tenth-grader Hallie Jones was right behind, carding a nice score of 87. Junior Olivia Walker also participated for the Lady Bulldogs, but her 18-hole score of 101 didn’t make the cut.
Greenbrier finished a distant third at 308, followed by Siloam Springs (328), Little Rock Christian (344), and Alma (353). Beebe and Vilonia didn’t have enough players to earn a team score.
The trio of Austin, Woody, and Jones were also named to the All-Conference team, according to Coach Sockey, and the Lady Bulldogs earned the right to compete in the state tournament in Paragould next week.
In boys play the Bulldogs fell just short of winning their own conference title, losing to Little Rock Christian by a measly two strokes, 324 to 326. But their second-place finish earned them a trip to state.
The Alma boys played well and finished a close third (340), with Greenbrier (353), Siloam Springs (359), Vilonia (383), Russellville (400), and Beebe (409) completing the field.
For Greenwood, junior Hayden Weaver led the way with a 78, followed by Ethan Clark (79), Brady Fein (84), Cade Shrum (85), and Landon Tuck (88). Only the top four scores counted. Weaver finished as runner-up to the tournament medalist.
The boys 5A state tournament will be held next week at Glenwood Country Club.
Earlier Matches
In preparation for the league tournament, both GHS teams played on September 12th and 18th against the same conference foes they faced on Monday.
On the 12th the GHS girls hosted Siloam Springs at Ben Geren park in Fort Smith and cruised to a huge victory over the Lady Panthers, winning 267 to 345.
Hallie Jones carded a team-low score of 83, followed by Ella Austin (84), Grace Woody (100), and Olivia Walker (109).
The GHS boys won the day with a combined score of 340, a comfortable 57 strokes ahead of Siloam Springs (397). The Bulldogs were led by senior Cade Shrum with a team-low score of 81.
Hayden Weaver was next with an 18-hole round of 84, followed by Ethan Clarke (86) and Landon Tuck (89). Brady Fein also fired a 91.
Junior varsity players Avery Cole (82), Jake Spoon (93), Chris Daggs (99), and Jake Robbins (124) also participated.
On the 18th the Lady Bulldogs (276) easily topped the triumvirate of Alma, Russellville, and Greenbrier, led by Austin, who carded a team-best 86. She was followed by Jones (89), Woody (101), and Walker (109).
The junior varsity girls played nine holes with freshmen Jessica Williams and Maleigha Carney carding a 62 and 59, respectively.
On the boys’ side the Bulldogs (313) notched a 41-stroke victory over Greenbrier (354), Alma (357), and Russellville (420). Senior Landon Tuck led the way and shared medalist honors with a score of 76.
Other Greenwood scores included Ethan Clark at 77, Brady Fein at 80, Cade Shrum also at 80, and Hayden Weaver with an 84.
The junior varsity boys also competed for Greenwood. Avery Cole fired an 86, followed by Chris Daggs (93), Jake Spoon (97), Jake Robbins (111), and Deacon Drennan (115).