The Ellsworth Panthers missed out on going to state as a team this year, but that didn’t stop Lexi Marks from qualifying to compete individually.

The Panthers pulled off a minor upset in regional competition sending Somerset home early and making it to sectionals. Unfortunately, this was their last stop as a unit as they took fourth in the sectional round. Marks, however, placed fourth in the sectional tournament overall, punching her ticket to state while incidentally beating the score of every member of the Prescott state championship team on their home course to do so.

Marks had a rough first nine holes in the state tournament at University Ridge Golf Course in Madison, but by the back nine she had settled in finishing out day one on a high note.

Day two picked up right where it left off as golfers play the course in reverse on the second day of the tournament, shooting the back nine holes first in the final round. Marks also picked up where she left off repeating her strong performance on the back nine and even shaving off a stroke.

Then came the front nine where she struggled in day one, but Marks didn’t slow down, beating her previous day’s score by a gigantic 12 strokes. Had she avoided day one jitters in her first state tournament and performed the way she did on day two, Marks would’ve had a top 25 finish among the best golfers in the state.

“Yesterday was windy, but I couldn't really hit very many shots like I normally could. Nerves got to me. I was anxious and nervous, and I put too much pressure on myself,” Marks said. “It was a good experience. I got to play a nice course, one of the nicest courses I've played, and it was just overall a good experience. Hopefully I can come back next year, and we can bring the team.”

Carson Huppert, head coach of the Panthers, points out how unique and beneficial it is to qualify and compete with such elite competition, regardless of the finish.

“It’s a learning experience. At the beginning, I think the nerves were there, so she couldn't really strike the ball as good as she can. But then today, she turned around and had a lot of good holes,” Huppert said. “She's a sophomore, she's young, and now she knows what she has to do if she wants to perform well here. It'll be a different scenario next time.”

Congratulations Lexi. It was an impressive run, and you’re just getting started.

Mahlia McCane

The River Falls Wildcats top golfer Mahlia McCane finished her season with an appearance in the state tournament at University Ridge Golf Course in Madison last week.

The Wildcats wanted to make it as a team, but fell short and sent McCane on by herself to compete as an individual in the state tournament. Overall, she played two rounds of very good golf, and she kept getting better as the tournament went on.

McCane shot a 91 on day one, finishing in the middle of the pack with the weather conditions being windy and cold as they were. Day two was even better for her as she shaved five strokes off that, finishing with an 86 and taking 41^st place out of all D1 golfers in the state.

“I felt more confident today knowing where to hit and where not to, and I was more adjusted to the greens. They're super fast. Just knowing where to hit my ball to set myself up for a better second shot helped,” McCane said. “Last year on my first day I shot worse than I did this year, but then today I shot worse than I did last year for the second day. Overall, I felt like I played better this year, like I feel like I put it more together, but the putts just weren't dropping.”

Head Coach Tim LaVold is proud of what McCane has done, especially because she did it on her own without the support of her team.

“It would have been nice to score a little bit better, but Mahlia played her best. This is a great championship course, and it's really, really difficult. We're not used to playing a course this challenging, and I thought Mahlia hit the ball really well for two days. We just had a little bit of trouble judging the stuff around the greens,” LaVold said. “It’s a course that makes you feel like you didn’t play very good, when, in reality, you hit the ball as good as you normally do, you just aren’t used to playing a course like this. Football fields, hockey rinks and basketball courts are all the same, it’s the opponent that’s different. Out here, the course is the opponent. Mahlia got here two years in a row, hit the ball well, and when you look at her accomplishments in our conference over her four-year career, she’s got a lot to be proud of.”

Indeed she does. McCane is a senior this year, so she will be graduating in the spring. Congratulations Mahlia, you played well.