State tournament
Alex Stone of Pequot Lakes tied for third in the Class 2A girls event. Brainerd's Gavin Metz tied for seventh in the 3A tournament.
JORDAN-Pequot Lakes senior Alex Stone fired a 2-over par 74 Wednesday during the final round of the Class 2A girls state tournament to finish in a tie for third place with a 151 at the Ridges at Sand Creek.
Stone carded 37s on the front and back nines following a 77 in Tuesday's opening round to complete her best showing in five consecutive state tournaments.
She tied for 36th in 2013 as a freshman, tied for 29th in 2014, tied for eighth in 2015 and tied for fourth last year with a 150 (78-72).
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"I started out (Wednesday) by parring the first eight holes and then bogeyed the ninth. I was happy with that," said Stone. "On the second nine, I started out with a birdie and had a little trouble with a couple of holes that I bogeyed, but I finished one over and I was pleased with that too.
"I'm really happy with my finish this year. My goal was to do better than last year (fourth) and it was a good way to end my high school career. I think today was my best round of the year and I finally got to playing where I should be."
Stone entered the final round tied for fourth and at 27 holes, was still sitting fourth at 114, five strokes behind the co-leaders. Her final 151 left her tied for third with Alayna Eldred of Osakis, seven strokes behind medalist Anni Heck of Visitation who ended the day with a 3-under 69 to finish at 144. Minnewaska's Ashlyn Guggisberg was second at 147.
"I thought she ended up right where she should have been," said Pequot Lakes head coach Jon Dale. "The two girls that beat her were finalists with her Sunday night at the banquet for the Ms. Minnesota Golf title."
"I came in before a lot of the other girls were finished, but (prior to that) I didn't know how anyone else was doing today," said Stone. "I didn't even look at the board. I was just focusing on my own game today."
Next year Stone will play golf for Augustana University in Sioux Falls, S.D.
"This was a good way to finish my high school career, but I'm not done yet," said Stone. "I'm looking forward to playing college golf next year."
"She's been great," said Dale. "She played great throughout the tournament and basically had only two bad holes throughout the whole tournament.
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"Today was the last (event) of my coaching career, and it was a great way to go out," he added. "I've been coaching for 30 years and it's kind of bittersweet, but I'm looking forward to spending more time with my youngest (11-year-old) son Jameson."
Wadena-Deer Creek senior McKayla Woods shaved 16 strokes off her opening-round total to finish at 196, tying for 61st in her first state tournament appearance.
Woods carded 45s on the front and back nines for a 90 Wednesday. She shot 106 (53-53) in the opening round.
Class 3A
COON RAPIDS-Brainerd's Gavin Metz couldn't miss on the first nine holes of the final day of the Class 3A boys state tournament at Bunker Hill Golf Course Wednesday.
The Warrior sophomore fired a 3-under 33 on the West course and carded a 38 on the front nine of the East course to finish the day 1-under-par 71. That gave him a two-day total of 146 that tied him for seventh place. He finished three strokes behind medalist Van Holmgren of Wayzata.
Metz made three birdies and parred the rest of the holes to start the day on the back nine.
"I hit every green on that side," said Metz, "and then made a couple of tricky putts to hit 33. On the front side, my drives were OK, but I had a few approach shots that were off and I three-putted twice on four and five. Putting was a factor on that side."
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"He was just absolutely stellar on the first nine." said Brainerd head coach Brian Wallace. "The back side seemed so easy for him. He made every green and all of his putts.
"On the second nine, that's just the way it is in golf," Wallace added. "When you're playing well, and in competition, the putts start to look longer and harder. But he came back and still wound up shooting his best round ever. We're very proud of him. The first hole he three-putted, he was putting for an eagle, and made par."
Metz had been sitting six strokes back of the leader and tied for 21st following his opening round 38-37--75.
His 33 Wednesday was the lowest score on the back nine, matched only by Holmgren in the opening round. Following 27 holes, Metz was tied for fourth with 108, two strokes off the pace. After completing his round, he had to wait for several other players to finish which he said was a little nerve-racking.
"All these players are good and can shoot well," said Metz. "I didn't know if I would make the top 10."
His tie for seventh earned him a medal (medals are presented to the top seven). His finish is the highest by a Warrior boy since Sean Halverson tied for fifth in 2009.
Metz's 146 total was 21 strokes better than his first state appearance last year, when as a freshman, he placed 77th with rounds of 83-84 for a 167.
"Coming back I told myself I'm not going to shoot in the 80s again-I said to myself I need to shoot better," Metz said. "Overall, I think I played great. Today was the first time under par for me in high school competition."
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"To be that much better (21 strokes) after one year, is amazing," said Wallace. "He's learned how to handle adversity and we're looking forward to him being around for a couple more years."
Class 1A
BECKER-After tying for 42nd with an opening-round 87 (45-42), Pine River-Backus' Brady Raph found his game on the final day of the Class 1A boys state tournament Wednesday at Pebble Creek Golf Club.
The Tigers' freshman, playing in his second state tournament, carded a 78 with 39s on the front and back nines to finish the tournament at 165, moving all the way up to a tie for 16th place. Last year, as an eighth-grader, he finished tied for 39th with a 171.
His PR-B senior teammate Nate Brasel turned in an identical round to his opening-day performance. Brasel finished 43-42 both days for a 170 total that placed him 34th. Last year he tied for 59th with a 181.
Pillager's Brady Enneking shaved a stroke off his first-round 85 to finish with a 169, tied for 32nd. Last year, as a junior, he tied for 30th with a 167.
Tommy Braaten of Blooming Prairie easily captured medalist honors with a 140 (68-72), 10 strokes ahead of the runner-up.
Final Round
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Class 3A
Individual medalist: Van Holmgren (Wayzata) 72-71--143
Brainerd result: Gavin Metz 75-71--146
Class 2A
Individual medalist: Anni Heck (Visitation) 75-69--144
Pequot Lakes result: 3(t)-Alex Stone 77-74--151
Wadena-Deer Creek result: 61(t)-McKayla Woods 106-90--196
Class 1A
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Individual medalist: Tommy Braaten (Blooming Prairie) 68-72--140
Pillager result: 32(t)-Brady Enneking 85-84--169
Pine River-Backus results: 16(t)-Brady Raph 87-78--165, 34-Nate Brasel 85-85--170
