The Comets got off to a rough start in the NICL West Division Tournament at Pine Lake Country Club, but after taking a beating on the first trip through the nine-hole course they started to figure things out.

Because of the recovery on their second nine, the BCLUW girls finished in second at the meet with a team total of 432, behind only NICL West champion Grundy Center’s 402.

Comet head girls golf coach Stacy Simpson said the way his girls came back after the tough start was almost as good to see as an outright win.

“It was one of those deals where the beginning of it got to us, we weren’t polished in the beginning, but it was great to see them mentally fight back and have a bad first round, come back with a second round and be where they need to be,” he said. “To me that means we have what we need to have, but we need to jump on it a little bit sooner.”

T-R PHOTO BY THORN COMPTON - East Marshall senior Jazzy Leavy putts on the sixth green during the NICL West Division Tournament on Monday at Pine Lake Country Club in Eldora. Leavy finished in sixth individually with a 106.

Nobody better emulated that bounceback ability than Comet senior Jaelyn Allen, who finished as the individual meet runner-up with a 99. Allen started her front nine with a 54 and was looking at a tough climb to finish under 100, but she said she wasn’t focused on doing anything but playing her game.

“I just kept my head up and just kept golfing,” Allen said. “I kind of told myself that I had to do better each hole and I did, so that’s what made me golf so much better.”

Lauren Dirks was the individual meet medalist with a 92 for the Spartans, and Allen said seeing she was close to a meet medalist win is tough but she is satisfied with where she finished.

“I feel pretty good, I could have done a lot better but it feels good to get second,” she said.

Behind Allen were three other solid scores with Lili Wilson finishing tied for the ninth-best score with a 112, Bailey Ashton coming in just behind with a 113 and Skye Teckenburg rounding out the Comet scoring with a 114.

T-R PHOTO BY THORN COMPTON

“They did alright, it wasn’t quite where I wanted them to be and it’s not where they want to be either,” Simpson said of his girls’ scores. “They agree with that, but it was something we were able to bounce back from and I hope it’s a drive to take us into regionals on Monday.”

East Marshall was third in the meet with a score of 462, led by senior Jazzy Leavy’s 106. Leavy finished in sixth place on a cardback and earned an all-conference knod, the first of her career.

“It feels pretty good for my senior year honestly,” Leavy said of her all-conference honor. “I hadn’t really placed up until now so yeah this is really my year to get everything done.”

Unlike many of the girls, Leavy had a consistent showing in both her trips through the course, shooting a 54 on the front nine and a 52 on the back.

“My goal was to shoot in the low or high 40s,” she said of her back nine. “Coming into my last hole I four-putted or I would have shot a 102, but that’s OK, I’ll keep going.”

T-R PHOTO BY THORN COMPTON

Following Leavy was Kayla Mommer with a 112, Rachael McAnulty with a 122 and Camy Weeks with a 124.

West Marshall finished in fifth with a 485, with Karissa Blocker leading the scoring with her 118 to finish in 15th place. Emma Stanley was next for the Trojans with a 119, while Jaden Hart and Whitney Edler rounded out the scoring with a 124 and 128 respectively.

Gladbrook-Reinbeck was seventh in the meet with a 509, but one Rebel managed to figure out the course as the day progressed. Junior Ella Murphy earned an all-conference bid by placing ninth individually on a cardback with her 112, and she said she, too, had a tough start to the day.

“My coach said to strive to do better, and after every hole I looked back to see if I did better and there were only one or two of them that were the same, so I improved,” she said.

Murphy might have made the putt of the day as well. On her final hole, finishing on No. 9 for the second time that day, Murphy faced an uphill putt from about 25 feet. She stepped up confidently and hit the ball firmly and it rolled into the cup.

Now heading into the regional meets next Monday, Murphy said she is feeling much more trust in her abilities.

“I am definitely more excited because I didn’t think I’d do too well since it was my first time golfing here, so I am really excited for regionals,” she said.

NICL West Division Tournament

At Eldora

Pine Lake Country Club, par 35

Team Standings — 1. Grundy Center 402, 2. BCLUW 436, 3. East Marshall 462, 4. AGWSR 479, 5. West Marshall 485, 6. South Hardin 488, 7. Gladbrook-Reinbeck 509.

All-conference (top 9) — 1. Lauren Dirks, GC, 92; 2. Jaelyn Allen, BCLUW, 99; 3. Lauren Krausman, GC, 99; 4. Frannie Brown, GC, 105; 5. Josie Holke-Farnam, GC, 106; 6. Jazzy Leavy, EM, 106; 7. Claire Grinkmeyer, SH, 109; 8. Madison Maifeld, SH, 109; 9. Ella Murphy, G-R, 112.

GRUNDY CENTER (402) — Dirks 92, Krausman 99, Brown 105, Holke-Farnam 106, Lauren Buhrow, Claire Verly 115.

BCLUW (436) — Allen 99, Lili Wilson 112, Bailey Ashton 113, Skye Teckenburg 114, Kennedy Williams 124, Abigail Hand DQ.

EAST MARSHALL (462) — Leavy 106, Kayla Mommer 112, Rachael McAnulty 122, Camy Weeks 124, Marissa Duffy 136, Kennedy Boliver 146.

AGWSR (479) — Hannah Homeyer 115, Alayna Hunt 120, Morgan Roelfs 123, Kenzie Kielty 124, Ryleigh Schipper 168, Natalie Gerstein 168.

WEST MARSHALL (485) — Karisa Blocker 118, Emma Stanley 119, Jaden Hart 124, Whitney Edler 128, Kalyn Polley 129, Josi Zahnd 142.

SOUTH HARDIN (488) — Brinkmeyer 109, Maifield 109, Sybil Below 118, Addie Heubner 152.

GLADBROOK-REINBECK (509) — Murphy 112, Taylor Frischmeyer 129, Reagan Skovgard 131, Paige Creswell 137, Maia McLean 140, Shayla Rufnecht 208.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)

• Daily Newsletter
• Breaking News
• Obituaries

Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *

• Yes
• No