Regional bound

MUNCIE — The Patriots knew they would have to wait as the second group off the course Saturday at Crestview Golf Club.
They were waiting to see if any of their teammates qualified for regional.
As scores started to trickle in, their focus shifted to whether or not they would move on as a team.
The dream turned to a reality.
Jay County scored a 399 to finish in third place in the girls golf sectional tournament, advancing to the regional meet for the first time in more than two decades.
Yorktown ran away with the sectional title, shooting a 314. The host Muncie Central was second with 347.
The top three teams and top three individuals not on advancing teams earn a berth in the regional meet.
Yorktown’s Morgan Clark shot a 72, par for the course, as the match medalist. Mackenzie Mehaffey (82) of Winchester, Union’s Taennamtip Lemjaikla (85) and Hana Padgett (95) of Wapahani all earned regional berths.
“Looking at what the results were and (seeing) how we played … if we played decent I thought we had a real good chance,” said JCHS coach Butch Gray, whose team advances to the New Castle regional Saturday at Westwood Golf Course. “The nice thing was how we picked each other up. That’s nice to see.”
Brooke Sanders had a 93 as the No. 1 score for Jay County, which qualified for the regional meet for the first time since its sectional championship in 1989, the only one in school history.
After making the turn with a 45, Sanders, a junior, bogeyed the 333-yard, par 5- 10th hole, and then shot 7s on the 11th and 13th holes. On the 132-yard, par-3 14th, her first shot hit went right and hit a tree, but kicked back out and stopped about 60 yards from the green. Her chip shot landed about 15 feet from the pin, and she two-putted for a bogey.
On the 370-yard, par-4 16th, Sanders’ drive went straight down the narrow fairway, coming to a rest about 180 yards from the green. A tough crosswind carried her approach to the right of the green, and her chip from between two small trees fell just short.
She finished with a bogey — her fourth straight — and then shot 1-over on each of the next two holes to close out her round.
“I was playing really good and kept hitting my driver like I knew I could,” Sanders said. “I wasn’t over-thinking holes, just going out and playing golf.”
Sydney Mathias had a 97 as the only other Patriot to shoot in double digits.
After back-to-back double bogeys on the fourth and fifth holes, Mathias sank a 20-foot, downhill putt to save bogey on the par-4 fifth. She then went bogey, double bogey and triple bogey on the next three holes before making par on the ninth for a 47 at the turn.
Mathias, a sophomore, nearly eagled the par-4 13th, when her second shot hit the pin and she putted in for a birdie — the only one on the day for the Patriots. She struggled at the tail end of her round though, shooting back-to-back 8s on par 4s and then closed out her round with a double-bogey on 18.
Rachel Antrim and Malarie Houck, both competing in their first sectional tournaments, had a 104 and 105 respectively for Jay County.
Houck, a senior and first-year golfer, had a 51 on the front including a par on nine, in which her birdie putt was four feet short. She struggled on the 10th as two straight putts lipped out, and she three-putted for an 8. She also needed three putts on No. 11.
Gray, who added he is glad the girls get to play another week, said the Patriots will have to work on their short game in preparation for Saturday’s regional.
“After watching some of them, I think we need to get on the putting green a little more,” said Gray, whose team matched its score from the Muncie Central invitational at Aug. 7 at Crestview, and was 37 strokes better than the sectional mark in 2013.
Maddison Baughn, a senior, struggled from the No. 1 spot on the Patriots’ roster, shooting a team-high 112. She had a 56 on both the front and back nine, including 10s on the 10th and 12th holes.
“I wish I could have actually golfed like I know I can,” said Baughn, a senior. “I’m just glad that we could make it out.”
Despite her high score, though, Baughn is glad her senior campaign isn’t over just yet.
“It feels pretty good,” she said. “I get a chance to redeem myself.”