It was an all-around great day for the Columbus East girls golf team.
Senior Rebecca Smith led the way, tying her best nine-hole score of her high school career by shooting an even-par 36 to give the Olympians a 179-242 win against Seymour on Wednesday at Otter Creek.
Smith finished with seven pars, a birdie and a bogey on her round. Early on, Smith thought her round was going to turn out differently.
“I was having some grip problems in the first couple of holes,” Smith said. “Once I got it figured out, things turned out pretty smoothly, and I was able to put in a great round.”
Even though Smith only hit three fairways, East coach Troy Buntin liked the way Smith scrambled.
“It was great,” he said. “She was able to get six greens in regulation, and anytime you can shoot a 36, it is a good day, and it was a great round by her.”
Nicole Bodi and Megan Hashimoto each finished with a 47. Autumn Fately rounded out the Olympian scoring with a 49. Lily Shelp carded a 53, and Sarah Krebs had a 56.
Buntin likes the progress that his team has been making so far this season.
“Megan played seven great holes today,” he said. “She is only a couple of shots away from avoiding high numbers. Autumn has been improving a lot lately and the same can be said for Lily.
“We will keep on working and making a lot better shot selection and be able to recover better,” he said. “We’re close, but we are getting there. It was a great today all-around.”
Hannah Thompson led the Owls with a 53. Andrea Asxom finished with a 60, Bailey Goben scored a 62, Lexi York had a 67, Kara Rice carded a 68 and Jenna Elber scored a 77.
With some new members playing golf for the first time on the team this season, Seymour coach RaeAnn Wintin is just trying to get down the basics.
“They have really come a long way even though it does not show up on the scorecard,” she said. “We have been working on our chipping and putting for the most part.”
Wintin said she likes what she sees from her veteran players.
“They are becoming more consistent,” she said. “They have been close a few times, so it is good to know that I have some solid girls at the top.”
