Another solid outing for Blue Jay girls golf

A fourth-place team finish in Minot on Thursday was followed up with a solid fifth-place effort by the Jamestown High School girls golf team at Links of North Dakota in Williston on Friday.

“Fourth- and fifth-place finishes are good enough to go to state,” JHS golf coach Dean Kraft said. “I was very happy with the sub-400 round at Roughrider in Minot. Any time you can break 400 with three seventh-graders in our starting lineup, it has to be encouraging.

“Williston’s Links of North Dakota is very demanding. It was great to get the young kids experience playing a quality course like that.”

Jamestown freshman Sierra Bennion shined once again for the Jays during the Williston Invitational, finishing in a three-way tie for second at 81, just three strokes behind Williston’s Kayla Barke who took home medalist honors after shooting a 78.

As a team, the Blue Jays carded a 417 on the 5,286-yard, par 72 course.

Bennion took second in Minot after forcing and then falling in a shootout to Dickinson’s Rachel Jahner, after both carded a round of 75. Jahner tied with Bennion at 81 on Friday.

“Sierra Bennion had a great two days. Her demeanor on the course is so mature, you can never tell if things are really good or really off and that helps her in pressure situations,” Kraft said. “She rode a hot putter both days but especially in Minot where she canned several big eight- to 15-foot putts to keep her round going.

“In Williston she was in it all the way to the end. It’s just a matter of time before she breaks through.”

Junior Maria LeFevre shot a 97 on Friday, good enough to place her 12th. As for the seventh-graders, Sarah Azure placed 25th with a 112, while Mara LeFevre and Kaitlin Mullowney tied at 32nd after both carded a 127.

It was Azure’s second straight round under 120.

“(Azure) brought some nice fundamentals in to open the season as she played golf with her father all summer,” Kraft said. “Once she gets some competitive experience under her belt and gets to know the courses in the west, I can see a bright future for her as well.”

Jamestown travels to Dickinson on Thursday.

Williston Invitational

At Links of North Dakota

Friday

Team results

1, Bismarck Century 365; 2, Dickinson 368; 3, Minot 398; 4, Bismarck 410; 5, Jamestown 417; 6, Williston 448; 7, Mandan 453.

Individual Results

1, Kayla Barke, W, 78; 2 (tie), Rachel Jahner, D, 81; Riana Copper, D, 81; Sierra Bennion, J, 81; 5, Annie Nelson, C, 85; 6 (tie) Alex Leidholm, C, 93; Alex Hopkins, C, 93; 8, Haili Duchscherer, M, 93; 9, Lindsay Reede, C, 94; 10, Katie Kasper, B, 95.

Other JHS results

12, Maria LeFevre, 97; 25, Sarah Azure, 112; 32 (tie), Mara LeFevre, 127; 32 (tie), Kaitlin Mullowney, 127.

Sun sports writer Michael Savaloja can be reached at (701) 952-8461 or by email at mikes@jamestownsun.com

Tags: sports, jays, golf