DELTA – With the spring season officially underway for girls golf, the Panthers and Bears looked to get their first stroke play action of the season under their belts.
Dolores, enjoying their first season back as a varsity program since 2019, placed 12th in their first scored tournament of the spring in the Devil’s Thumb Invitational in Delta on Monday. M-CHS, meanwhile, took fourth in the field as the Panthers adjust to the switch from the 3A to the 2A classification.
First-year coaches lead both teams, as Cheri Walker guides the Bears while M-CHS turns to Jarrett Watkins for an exciting season.
M-CHS leans on experience with a pair of 2024 state qualifiers opening their seasons with top-10 finishes on the tricky Delta course. Junior Amita Crowley posted an 82 to lead the Panthers with fifth-place individual performance, dropping in a pair of birdies in her round.
Classmate Afton Unrein finished in a tie for eighth individually with a 92 with a birdie and three pars on her card.
Sophomore Dannika Goodall took 34th in the field with a round of 121 with four bogeys – rounding out the Panthers scoring with 295 strokes.
Junior Keira Jago (56th, 141) and freshman Tenley Bryan (68th, 158) capped the Panthers’ performances as M-CHS took the best team result from any competitor in the 2A and 3A classes.
For the Bears, a total of 396 from their trio of golfers set the early bar from which they will continue to improve this season.
Dolores boasts a team with prior golfing experience – all three of their performers played for M-CHS last year. Junior Julianne Vega paced the way for the Bears, earning a birdie as part of her round of 125 – good for 41st in the field.
Senior Siena Parr placed not far behind, posting a round of 130 that included a par to take 47th overall. Junior Jadyn Gorsuch tied with M-CHS’ Jago for 56th with a round of 141 to contribute to the Bears team score.
For neither the Panthers nor Bears, their representation in Delta wasn’t the full complement of athletes that they’ll field this year. DHS has a half dozen athletes, and their early-season improvement is exciting for their head coach.
“Each of these girls are high-achieving students who are all eager to learn and improve their game,” said Walker, “they are supportive of one another and enjoy being together.”
Starting with a parent meeting in the fall led by DHS athletic director Curtis Garver, the school made the determination that there was more than sufficient interest for the Bears to build their own team and establish a vision for the next few years of the program.
“It’s been great so far,” said Walker, “we want the girls to develop a lifelong love for the game and create memories that they will take with them after high school.”
Durango placed four golfers in the top 15 and won the event by four strokes (256) over Fruita Monument (260), while Montrose placed third (285) – 10 strokes ahead of the Panthers. Battle Mountain’s Makena Thayer won the individual medalist honor with a round of 78.
The Bears and Panthers will look forward to action again in April when they travel to Montrose for back-to-back tournaments on the courses at Cobble Creek and Black Canyon on April 7-8. M-CHS will host their home invite at Conquistador Golf Course on Tuesday, April 15, and then the Bears will have their tournament the following week on the same course.
