October 19, 2021 at 5:11 a.m.
Bruns 4th in state
Tribe senior climbs two spots from day one and earns All-Ohio
Bruns 4th in state
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Jalyn Bruns struggled a bit on the second day of the state tournament.
But so did more than two-thirds of the field, including two girls who were ahead of her after day one.
Bruns, a Fort Recovery High School senior, improved two places from where she was a day earlier to finish fourth overall Saturday in the OHSAA Division II Girls Golf State Tournament at Ohio State University’s Gray Course.
“It feels good,” said Bruns, who finished Saturday during windy conditions with an 81, which was tied with four other players for the 11th-best score on day two. “My goal was top-five after (Friday), so it was good to accomplish it.”
The future Indiana University-East Red Wolf, who shot 5-over-par 75 Friday and was sixth overall heading into Saturday, capped her career by earning first-team All-Ohio honors. She becomes the first player in the history of the Midwest Athletic Conference to make first team All-Ohio. She joins Coldwater’s Kelly Koesters (2012-13) and St. Henry’s Ellen Naumann (2019-20) as the only MAC players to make All-Ohio at any level.
“I’m so proud of her,” said Joe Bruns, Jalyn’s father and coach. “First time here. A lot of these girls have played four years, three years; this was her first year. Playing this course for the first time and throwing that 75, and a really good front nine today, I’m just proud. She’s deserving of it.
“She just, to me, has met all expectations.”
Bruns began the final round of her high school career on the front nine.
Following a par on the first hole, she settled for double bogey — her first of the tournament — on the par-3 second hole.
She got those two strokes back with a birdie on the 245-yard, par-4 fifth and the 471-yard, par-5 eighth holes. But she made the turn at 2-over 37, the same she scored Friday, following another double bogey on the par-4 ninth hole.
The senior began the back nine with consecutive bogeys, and saved a double bogey on 10 by sinking a 25-foot putt.
She had a chance to get one more stroke back on the par-5 13th, but an uphill putt from about 30 feet out was 4 feet short.
Then, strong winds started to take hold of the course. She bogeyed the next three holes to sit at 7-over par with three holes to play.
On the par-4 16th, she encountered the hilliest portion of the course and had a double bogey.
After making par on the final par-3 — a 40-foot birdie putt was short by less than a foot on the 17th hole — she capped her round with another double bogey.
“It was a little bit (frustrating), but at the same time I was just happy to be here,” Bruns said of the four double bogeys. “I knew I played good on the first nine so I was just seeing what I could get on the back nine.
“Obviously the doubles I’d like to do again. Some of the tee-off shots I think would help a lot if I was in the fairway.
“I don’t really regret anything.”
Grouped with Samantha Turk of Villa Angela-St. Joseph and four-time state qualifier Sydney Wesson of Benjamin Logan, they were the second-to-last trio off the course.
Ella Wong (146) of Gates Mills Hawken, Nicole Jones (148) of Shelby and Kristina Ma (151) of Columbus School for Girls were the last three off the course.
Wong (146) held her two-stroke lead over Jones from Friday to win the state champion, with Jones (148) ending as runner-up and Ma (151) in third.
And after a grueling wait of a half hour to see her final place, Bruns and her two-day total of 156 climbed two spots despite adding six strokes to her score from the opening round.
“I didn’t know I was going to get top five,” she said. “I was shocked. It’s nice to get it.”
Joe, who battled cancer a year ago and fought tears while speaking to media after Jalyn received her All-Ohio plaque, commended his daughter on her tournament play despite the windy conditions which led to 49 out of 71 players — including Wong, Jones and Ma — to shoot worse on the second day.
“It was so tough,” he said. “The conditions were so tough and she just kept on playing. That’s just classic Jalyn. She just plays the next shot. She hit a couple bad ones and recovered. Sometimes in golf you just kind of survive a hole and look for the next one.
“I’m just glad, you know, she got to experience this because she’s put a lot of time in.”
But so did more than two-thirds of the field, including two girls who were ahead of her after day one.
Bruns, a Fort Recovery High School senior, improved two places from where she was a day earlier to finish fourth overall Saturday in the OHSAA Division II Girls Golf State Tournament at Ohio State University’s Gray Course.
“It feels good,” said Bruns, who finished Saturday during windy conditions with an 81, which was tied with four other players for the 11th-best score on day two. “My goal was top-five after (Friday), so it was good to accomplish it.”
The future Indiana University-East Red Wolf, who shot 5-over-par 75 Friday and was sixth overall heading into Saturday, capped her career by earning first-team All-Ohio honors. She becomes the first player in the history of the Midwest Athletic Conference to make first team All-Ohio. She joins Coldwater’s Kelly Koesters (2012-13) and St. Henry’s Ellen Naumann (2019-20) as the only MAC players to make All-Ohio at any level.
“I’m so proud of her,” said Joe Bruns, Jalyn’s father and coach. “First time here. A lot of these girls have played four years, three years; this was her first year. Playing this course for the first time and throwing that 75, and a really good front nine today, I’m just proud. She’s deserving of it.
“She just, to me, has met all expectations.”
Bruns began the final round of her high school career on the front nine.
Following a par on the first hole, she settled for double bogey — her first of the tournament — on the par-3 second hole.
She got those two strokes back with a birdie on the 245-yard, par-4 fifth and the 471-yard, par-5 eighth holes. But she made the turn at 2-over 37, the same she scored Friday, following another double bogey on the par-4 ninth hole.
The senior began the back nine with consecutive bogeys, and saved a double bogey on 10 by sinking a 25-foot putt.
She had a chance to get one more stroke back on the par-5 13th, but an uphill putt from about 30 feet out was 4 feet short.
Then, strong winds started to take hold of the course. She bogeyed the next three holes to sit at 7-over par with three holes to play.
On the par-4 16th, she encountered the hilliest portion of the course and had a double bogey.
After making par on the final par-3 — a 40-foot birdie putt was short by less than a foot on the 17th hole — she capped her round with another double bogey.
“It was a little bit (frustrating), but at the same time I was just happy to be here,” Bruns said of the four double bogeys. “I knew I played good on the first nine so I was just seeing what I could get on the back nine.
“Obviously the doubles I’d like to do again. Some of the tee-off shots I think would help a lot if I was in the fairway.
“I don’t really regret anything.”
Grouped with Samantha Turk of Villa Angela-St. Joseph and four-time state qualifier Sydney Wesson of Benjamin Logan, they were the second-to-last trio off the course.
Ella Wong (146) of Gates Mills Hawken, Nicole Jones (148) of Shelby and Kristina Ma (151) of Columbus School for Girls were the last three off the course.
Wong (146) held her two-stroke lead over Jones from Friday to win the state champion, with Jones (148) ending as runner-up and Ma (151) in third.
And after a grueling wait of a half hour to see her final place, Bruns and her two-day total of 156 climbed two spots despite adding six strokes to her score from the opening round.
“I didn’t know I was going to get top five,” she said. “I was shocked. It’s nice to get it.”
Joe, who battled cancer a year ago and fought tears while speaking to media after Jalyn received her All-Ohio plaque, commended his daughter on her tournament play despite the windy conditions which led to 49 out of 71 players — including Wong, Jones and Ma — to shoot worse on the second day.
“It was so tough,” he said. “The conditions were so tough and she just kept on playing. That’s just classic Jalyn. She just plays the next shot. She hit a couple bad ones and recovered. Sometimes in golf you just kind of survive a hole and look for the next one.
“I’m just glad, you know, she got to experience this because she’s put a lot of time in.”
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