Canton shot well enough to win the Harrisburg Golf Invitational Thursday with a 344 while Sioux Falls Christian finished as runner-up with a 346, but as Lady Quarrier Coach Jeff Devorak told Big Sioux Media it was still a good day.

“It was a beautiful blue sky and nearly 80 degrees, but that darn wind howled again over 20 mph. I think all the girls have gotten used to it, however, because the scores were strong.  Spring Creek’s greens are much larger than we see on most courses so our putt count was little higher than normal, but that didn’t stop Brianna (84), April (103) and Natasha (110) from setting their career lows – I was extra proud of those girls. Natasha and April were actually in a playoff for our last varsity spot and even though April edged her out, Natasha really competed and made her earn it. Emily (86) and Bri really stepped up and played clean golf while Hannah (94) put together her 2nd strong round in a row.  Lexie (94) is battling a little knee “tweak” right now but she was able to grind out a decent score – she is a tough one and will certainly not let it affect her at Monday’s region. Our team total (3rd place) was a respectable 358 and were going to need that to move down a few strokes as we hit the post-season”.

Weekend rains caused some problems in different parts of the region including some really wet spots at Rocky Run Golf course in Dell Rapids for the Big Sioux Conference Tournament which was played Monday.  The back 9 was unplayable according to Bryan Guischer, head pro at Rocky Run, because of the standing water.  Dell Rapids Coach Jeff Dvorak reported to Big Sioux Media about the conditions, how the teams adapted, and how his Lady Quarriers competed.

“We had some flooding in Dells and had to turn our meet into playing the front 9 twice – which didn’t seem to affect a whole lot. The wind, however, did have an effect.  That wind, blowing over 20 mph most of the day, made it difficult for everyone but I was proud of how we scored.  Several of our girls really stepped up as SFC was their usuall stellar selves and Canton and Dakota Valley put up some good numbers.  Lexie has continued her consistent leadership near the top (85) and Emily shot her season best (88).  Hannah really came through as Canton, Dells and Dakota Valley were tied after the first 3 scores were in – Her 91 took us to that 2nd place finish. I was also proud of April Tomes (108) who shot her career low and really seems to be improving nicely. Brianna rounded out the squad with a 95 which is a bit higher than she is used to but was a bit under the weather today,” said Dvorak.

Shyler Funk of Dakota Valley was medalist with a 77, while Dells Lexie Pierson was 4^th with an 85 and Emily Haak was 8^th with an 88 to finish in the Top 10.  Team scoring had Sioux Falls Christian with a 336, 22 strokes better than runner-up Dell Rapids Quarriers who shot 358.

Each day brings the Dell Rapids Lady Quarriers golf team closer to the Regional Meet and then the trip out west for the State Golf Meet.  This past Thursday the challenging links style course of Baker Crossing against some very good teams was a good test at the Sioux Falls Christian Golf Invitational.   Parkston had the low team score with a 324 followed by Sioux Falls Christian with a 354, but as Dells Coach Jeff Devorak reported to Big Sioux Media the team played well finishing in 3^rd place with a 370.

“What a beautiful day!  Whenever we’ve played Baker Crossing in the past, the wind was howling and the course was extremely difficult.  80 degrees and little wind made for a great day as well as some solid golf.  Lexie and Brianna stayed on track shooting an 85 and 86 respectively placing them 6th and 8th.  Lexie’s putting was much higher than she’d like but she is striking the ball very well right now.  Brianna had trouble off the tee but scrambled to score very well after that.  It’ll be exciting to see how low they can go when they put it all together.  Emily bounced back after a tough opening hole to finished just outside the top 15 – I was very proud of her resilience. Hannah had a solid round and will continue to lower her scores as she cleans up her game around the green.  April Tomes rounded out the varsity 5 and she made nice strides in her putting. Parkston was unbeatable, but again we are within striking distance of SFC.  Against this field on this course, I was very proud of our performance”.

Individually Lexie Pierson had an 85, Brianna Davis recorded an 86, Emily Haak shot a 95,  Hannah Hammer a 104, and April Tomes a 123.  Monday, May 7^th, the golfers will be at Rocky Run as Dell Rapids will host the BSC Invite.  Tee time is 9:00 am.

A windy day at Meadow Creek Golf Course, host course for Sioux Valley and the Regional Golf Meet in 2 weeks, proved to be a challenging day for the Lady Quarriers.   Coach Jeff Devorak told Big Sioux Media, “the wind really blew today and kept the scores a bit higher than I thought they might be. In spite of that, Bri and Lexie continued to play well.  I thought April Tomes golfed pretty well as our 5th varsity player today; it will be fun to watch her scores continue to come down.  Our focus today was to familiarize ourselves with the course as our Region is here in about 2 weeks.  We tried to keep good notes on where and where not to end up as well as possible club selections – hopefully that pays off at Regions”.

The Lady Quarriers had low team score with 393, one stroke better than Aberdeen Roncalli.  Lexie Pierson shot 87 while Brianna Davis hit 89, but despite the good scores from the two Lady Quarriers, Medalist Honors went to Roncalli’s Allison Thielsen with an 85.  Hannah Hammer of Dell Rapids hit a 102, one stroke better than 7^th place finisher for Roncalli, Brianna Weber, allowing the Lady Quarriers to capture the team win.

Next up for Dell Rapids will be Thursday’s Sioux Falls Christian Invitational, another strong foe of the Lady Quarriers.  Tee time is 9am Thursday.