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Lakeview girls golfers win state
By Brian Dzenis
Four seniors on the Lakeview High School girls golf team couldn’t ask for a better ending to their story.
The Bulldogs (seniors Kaylee Neumeister, Ashley Frasca, Taylor Horn and Molly McAllister and junior Emily Coller) fended off a stiff challenge Saturday from Rocky River Lutheran West to win the Division II state tournament by two strokes at the Ohio State University Gray Course in Columbus.
Columbiana (Elise Hammond, Alexa Tringhese, Alexandria Moreschi, Hannah Garofalo and Shannon Marshburn) finished sixth, shooting the same 362 that the Clippers shot on the first day of the tournament.
The Bulldogs remained composed even though they were well aware of how slim the margin was.
“I always keep track of where I am compared to my playing partners and at end of [the first day], we were only up by four to [Lutheran West] so we had the lead, but four strokes isn’t much of a lead,” Neumeister said. “It was kind of in our minds that it was really close so you have to go out and play and hope for the best.”
Neumeister, The Vindicator’s reigning U-17 Greatest Golfer of the Valley champ, led her team with a 78 on the second day to put together the second-best individual performance of the tournament. She finished with an overall score of 153, one stroke behind the tourney’s best individual, Shelby’s Alexis Jones.
Lakeview, which came close in 2014, also had great performances from Frasca, Horn and McAllister, with the latter two dropping their scores from the first day by a combined 13 strokes.
“I definitely could not have done this without my whole team,” Neumeister said. “Some people think of Lakeview and I’m somehow synonymous with that and it’s really not just me.
“My team had my back the whole way and while I led them into this, I would not be bringing home the trophy without them.”
Lakeview coach Mike Turco agreed.
“Those are going to be big shoes to fill,” Turco said. “Kaylee is a special player, but not to leave anyone out, Ashley Frasca has shoes that will be difficult to fill, Taylor Horn is a huge loss and Molly McAllister will be very missed.
“They’re a group of girls that come around once in a coach’s lifetime and I was just blessed and fortunate to be where I am to coach such a great group.”
Columbiana coach Chad Moreschi said: “It’s funny, I thought we kind of went in as a No. 6 seed with how they placed you.
“We finished in sixth [Friday] and we shot the same score today to the number and stayed in sixth, so I guess that’s where we belonged that whole time,” Moreschi said. “Nobody got hot. Sometimes I just think you need a girl or two to go on a streak and they’ve gone there before, but for the past two days, everyone played steady, played good golf, but nobody could get hot at anyt ime.”
Ursuline’s Sydney Heinbaugh could not break out of a crowded field, finishing in sixth place with a score of 161 after ending the first day of the tournament in a three-way tie for fourth.
In the Division III boys tournament at OSU’s Scarlet Course, Columbiana couldn’t catch Lancaster Fisher Catholic, finishing in second place eight strokes behind. The Clippers did show some promise for next year as sophomore Jared Wilson shot a team best 78. Three of the five starters from this year’s team will return next year.
“The future looks bright, we’re looking to fill a few big spots that Bruce Wiggins and Joe Lucci, our No. 2 and No. 3 guys, leave behind,” Columbiana coach Jeff Jackson said. “Hopefully this gave the younger guys a taste of what opportunities are out there and hopefully we’ll work on our games in the offseason and we’ll be back next year.”
The other Clippers are Seth Ross and Griffin Williams.
Warren JFK placed 10th with 752, with the best individual score coming from Zach Shoaf with a 179.
Girard’s Mark Standohar finished fourth with a 167 in the Division II boys tournament at Sunbury’s NorthStar Club.