WICHITA, Kan.—
Derby had four girls on its golf team in 2010. The team finished nowhere near a state berth as it finished sixth out of seven teams at the Heights Regional Tournament.The Derby girls’ golf team was in dire straits but going into Monday’s regional tournament, it knew it had a shot of doing what the 2010 team didn’t. It had a shot to make state.
“We knew it would come down to us and (Wichita) East,” said Derby head coach Tim Herrs. “We weren’t sure if we were going to make it.”
With an up-and-down back nine, Herrs stayed on edge. His team shot well on the front nine, and he thought it shot well on the back as well.
“We were finishing up and I thought our scores looked pretty good,” said Herrs. “But then other scores started coming in and I wasn’t sure if we would make it.”
When all the scores were posted it read Manhattan in first with 332, Washburn Rural in second with 336 and Derby in third with 422. The Lady Panthers qualified for state.
“It feels great,” said Herrs. “We had four girls out for the team last season, so I’m pleased with the job the girls did today. It was what I expected for today.”
Many on the squad don’t have much golf background, so if someone had a bad shot, they didn’t have much confidence to bounce back, forget about it and make a good shot.
Five golfers from non-qualifying teams qualify for the state tournament. Although East missed the cut with a fourth-place finish, all five individual golfers from non-qualifying teams came from East.
Derby beat East by 10 strokes with a score of 422 to East’s 432. There will be five Lady Panthers and five Lady Blue Aces at the state tournament.
Manhattan’s Jenna Crusinberry took the individual tournament championship with a 76. Teammate Blake Fingalsen finished second with a score of 81 and Washburn Rural’s Emma Hutchinson finished third with a score of 82.
The 6A state tournament will be held at Shadow Glen Country Club in Olathe on Oct. 17.
