The Miami Trace Lady Panthers golf team completed the Frontier Athletic Conference season by winning the championship Monday at The Greens.
Miami Trace went undefeated during the FAC matches during the season and also finished in first place in Monday’s 18-hole match.
Miami Trace won Monday’s match with a 414 score.
Chillicothe was second with a 453, McClain was third with a 467, Jackson was fourth with a 484 and Washington was fifth with a 563.
Miami Trace completed the FAC schedule with a perfect 24-0 record.
McClain takes second place at 15-9.
Chillicothe and Jackson tied for third, each with a record of 10-14.
Washington was fifth at 1-23.
Libby Aleshire and Alyssa Butler of Miami Trace were co-medalists of Monday’s match, each with a 94. She was named Player of the Year with a 9-hole season average of 45.8.
Six other student-athletes earned First Team, All-FAC honors.
Alyssa Butler and Makayla Barnes of Miami Trace were named First Team, All-FAC. Butler had a season average of 47.6 and Barnes averaged 56.8 for 9-holes in FAC matches.
Barnes shot a 115 Monday.
“We’re undefeated in the FAC,” Miami Trace head coach Todd Wallace said. “We have a few losses otherwise, but, we’re looking forward to Sectionals. We want to make it out to the District and make a run at Districts, possibly runner-up, that’s our goal. New Philadelphia in our District, in Division I, they have the strongest program.
“We have a group of girls that help each other,” Wallace said. “They do a lot of peer coaching. They help each other in their problems with their swings, and homework, things of that nature.
“Destinee Butcher is probably our most improved player,” Wallace said. “She’s dropped the most strokes. Libby and Alyssa continue to drop strokes and get better every couple of rounds or so. Haley Davis is a first-year senior. She came in strong and helped us out with that sixth spot. Makayla struggled a little bit early, but she’s coming back now.
“All three of the girls who made all-league this year also made all-league last year,” Wallace said. “They are all sophomores.”
Miami Trace has a match at Wilmington Wednesday and then they will host Watkins Memorial on Sept. 26.
“We had a lot of progression,” Washington head coach Derrick Lyons said. “We have three returning sophomores who really hadn’t played golf before last year and then two sophomores joined us this year who just picked up the game this summer.
“I saw a lot of improvement from all of the girls,” Lyons said. “All of them had one night when they came out and had everything together. Our goal now is to take that over the next two years and make that more consistent. It’s great that we’re bringing back all five sophomores. I have them for two more years. We’ve already talked about in two years having our (team picture) taken after the (FAC match).”
Also for Miami Trace, Destinee Butcher shot a 111, Regan Hagler, 124 and Haley Davis, 152.
Savannah Osborne led Washington with a 118.
Erynne Croker shot a 144, Taylor Hixson, 144, Kaitlyn Coder, 159 and Kennedy Sutton, 169.
Bri Weller and Shayna Beatty of McClain are First Team, All-FAC.
Weller shot a 103 Monday and averaged a 9-hole score of 50.0 in FAC matches this season.
Beatty shot a 108 Monday and had a 52.8 average during the season in FAC matches.
Other scores for McClain: Madison Beatty, 136; Cate Willis, 144 and Emma Stegbauer, 120.
Chillicothe’s Isabella Fischer was First Team, All-FAC. She shot a 104 Monday and had a season average of 53.8.
Other Chillicothe scores: Julie Lemaster, 105; Avery Brown, 130; Meryl Haller, 114.
For Jackson, Madeline Lewis was First Team, All-FAC. She shot a score of 105 Monday and had a 9-hole season average in FAC matches of 54.4.
Other Jackson scores: Sierra Stiffler, 126; Isabella Scully-Tenpenny, 125; Kaltra Woltz, 128; Makena Folden, 133; Jenna Smalley, 135.
The Division I Sectional tournament for the Southeast District will include Miami Trace, Athens, Chillicothe, Jackson, Logan, Marietta and Warren and will be held Monday, Sept. 30 at the Pickaway Country Club.
The top three teams and top three individuals not on those teams will qualify to the District tournament on Oct. 7 at Eaglesticks Golf Course in Zanesville.
The next event for Washington is the Division II Sectional tournament on Monday, Sept. 23 at the Chillicothe Jaycees course. There will be 21 teams in that tournament with the top three teams and top three individuals not on a qualifying team advancing to the District tournament set for Tuesday, Oct. 1 at Pickaway Country Club.
