In a 20-team field, the Alexandria girls golf team took fourth place at the two-day 2023 MN Girls Tri-State Preview Invitational Tournament in Coon Rapids at Bunker Hills Golf Club on Friday and Saturday.
Alexandria had 658 strokes and finished just behind Minnetonka (657), while Detroit Lakes finished second (654) and Maple Grove took first (631).
“It was exciting to have two outstate schools leading the tournament after the first day of play,” Alexandria head coach Tim Zupfer said. “We also got to play with our friends from Detroit Lakes head-to-head on Day 2. With such a large field occupying the course, pace of play was quite slow. This put the players on the course for about 6 hours, making for quite the grind. It was an emotional weekend of play. I believe that playing the venue of the state tournament, playing in such a talented field, and playing a challenging course put a lot of stress on the players. I was very pleased with our play and how well we handled our emotions and the environment.”
Alexandria’s Hannah Boraas was the individual winner of the tournament as she posted a score of 1-over par (145) and won by five strokes.
“Hannah had two very good days hitting the driver,” Zupfer said. “This set her up with some very good scoring opportunities on many of the par 5's.”
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She had six birdies and 24 pars in the tournament.
Aisling O’Connor tied for 15th with a total of 162. She had two birdies and 19 pars.
“Aisling really had a nice start to her tournament,’’ Zupfer said. “She was 1 under par through her first 6 holes of the event and shot 38 on her front 9 Friday. She parred the last 3 holes of her 2nd nine, after back-to-back double bogeys to post a very fine first-day score of 79. After a frustrating 44 on her front 9 Saturday, she responded well shooting 39 on her 2nd nine for an 83 total.”
Rachel Bowen tied for 32nd with a total of 170. She had one birdie and 15 pars.
Grace Herzog tied for 45th with a score of 185 with two birdies and seven pars.
“Rachel did not have the best start early in her round on Friday, shooting 45 on the West Course,” Zupfer said. “She battled back strong with a birdie and 5 pars on the East Course to shoot 39. This gave her a score of 84 on day one of the tournament. Rachel suffered through five penalty shots on day two to shoot a respectable score of 86. Each time she encountered a penalty shot (or two) she continued to play each hole strong. Twice she limited her score on a hole to double-bogey after two penalty shots. I was impressed with her determination and poise. Grace was one of our players to see this golf course for the first time. She was somewhat disappointed with scores on certain holes. However, many of her teammates did not shoot as well as 92 and 89 the first two times on this golf course. Grace finished strong with two birdies the second day, including one with a chip in on her final hole. Her score of 43 on her final nine was her best of the weekend.”
Rounding out the Alexandria scores, Kennedy Ellingson tied for 70th with a score of 190, while Ellie Sticha tied for 72nd with a score of 192.
Ellingson had eight pars and Sticha had 12 pars.
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“Kennedy is another player to step on this course for the first time,” Zupfer said. “Kennedy really had some holes with great ball-striking. I saw her hit many incredible drives and iron shots. At times she was frustrated with her short game, however she had an incredible up and down from behind the green on hole #14 on the second day. She also posted a very solid score of 43 on the East Course (her second nine) the first day. Ellie mainly struggled to recover from some errant tee shots. She found herself in some tough places and was unable at times to escape effectively. This resulted in some larger numbers on her scorecard. We did celebrate her play on the East Course (her second nine) on the first day of shooting 42. She also posted 5 consecutive pars on the East Course on day two, before falling victim to some large numbers.”
Alexandria competes in day two of the Central Lakes Championship on Monday at 2 p.m. in St. Cloud. Alexandria has a six-stroke lead over Brainerd.
TOP-EIGHT TEAM SCORES - 1. Maple Grove, 631; 2. Detroit Lakes, 654; 3. Minnetonka, 657; 4. Alexandria, 658; 5. Edina, 663; 6. East Ridge, 683; 7. Eastview, 684; 8. Chaska, 685
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