“Who’s
there?’’ asked the Xavier Prep golfers on Monday night (Oct. 29) at their hotel
rooms after the first round of the Division I state tournament at the Omni
Tucson National courses.
“It’s Tui.
Time for bed check,’’ said co-head coach Tui Selvaratnam, sounding much like a
pro football team official keeping an eye on players during the annual training
camp.
The door
opened, and from behind coach Tui came this . . . thing.
The figure was
dressed all in black and had a mask pulled over the head.
“It was a
skeleton, only worse,’’ said co-head coach Sr. Lynn Winsor.
She should
know. She was the one wearing the get-up. She stages the fright night
every so often around Halloween, but not every year. After all, you have to
keep it fresh, not let them know when or if it might be coming.
“It is good
for team bonding,’’ Winsor said. “We also wore our Halloween socks.’’
After
catching their breath, the girls showed their scary side in the tournament’s final
day on Tuesday (Oct. 30).
Scary that
the Gators are so good.
They played
in rarified air, particularly in the second round, as all five participants
combined to finish in the top 10 and lifted XCP to an incredible 33-shot lead
over second-place Phoenix Pinnacle.
Xavier
finished the tournament on the Catalina and Sonoran courses with a total of
588, 12 over par. It was the school’s 36th golf crown and eighth in
a row.
Leading the
way was junior Ashley Menne, who took a 2-shot advantage over Scottsdale Chaparral’s
Grace Summerhays to win her third straight individual title. Only two other
golfers have done so – Grace Park, who played at Xavier and Phoenix Horizon,
and the late Xavier great, Heather Farr.
Menne had to
have a strong effort on the back nine as she dueled Summerhays and Peoria
Liberty freshman Madison Frick most of the day. Menne shot a 3-under-par 70 on
the Catalina on Monday and an even-par 71 on the Sonoran on Tuesday for a final
tally of 3-under 141.
In the final
round, Menne double-bogeyed her first hole and bogeyed two other holes on the
front nine. But she also birdied two holes and added two more on the 11th
and 12th holes to remain in contention.
“She did
great. It is very rare for someone to do,’’ said Winsor, also XCP’s athletic
director.
The other
four Gators on the leaderboard were junior Breyana Matthews, tied for third at
145, sophomore Lauren Garcia, tied for eighth at 152, and freshman Ivy Song and
sophomore Bailee Tayles, tied for 10th at 153.
“We looked
at the golfers we had coming into this season and thought we would have a
strong team,’’ Winsor said. “And that’s just how they played. I think it has
been one of the strongest we have had at the school.
“Coach Tui
and I could not be more proud of the girls. Playing in the state tournament is
always pressurized, and they came in and played true Gator golf.’’
Those
members of the team who did not play in the tournament were allowed to
participate in the festivities surrounding the event, such as staying overnight
and supporting those who were playing.
Winsor and
Selvaratnam will have a deep roster again next year, particularly since none of
this year’s state tournament players are seniors.
“We are
right in line to keep this thing going,’’ Winsor said.