As the sun was preparing to set at The Edge (formerly Edgewood Golf Club), the host of the Lapel girls golf regional, one of the members of the Noblesville team noted that it had been a long day.
“Yes,” said Millers coach Justin Werkley, “but it was worth it in the end.”
Indeed. Noblesville waited out a rain delay that pushed back the start of the regional by an hour, then went out and played a consistent round of golf – one that gave the Millers another regional title.
Noblesville totaled a score of 313 to win the Lapel regional, thus defending its championship. It’s the first time the Millers have won consecutive regional titles in 19 years; the last time Noblesville did so was during a streak of five championships in a row from 1998 to 2002.
“We played really well today,” said Werkley. “Just a good day to have a good day. The goal is always just to advance, but to get a win is a nice extra, nice cherry on top.”
The top three teams at the regional advance to the state finals, which begin Friday at Prairie View Golf Club in Carmel. Hamilton Southeastern will join the Millers at the state; the Royals finished a close second with a score of 315. Batesville finished third with a 331 and qualified for state for the first time in school history.
Noblesville had two golfers finish in the top five. Caroline Whallon led the way with a 74, good for runner-up honors. Whallon carded a 34 on her back nine.
Jordan Adam placed fifth by scoring 77, followed by 81s from Sophi Stutz and Olivia Anderson, both of whom were playing in their first regional. Erin Burt, also a first-time regional participant, rounded out the Millers scoring with an 87. Noblesville’s consistency won the day, and Werkley called it “the name of the game.”
“We were steady, we didn’t make a lot of mistakes,” said Werkley. “The rain delay this morning and the tough conditions, they were just mentally tough and gutted it out all day.”
The regional victory was the 13th for the Millers. Noblesville is now tied with Penn and Carmel (which won its 13th regional title yesterday at Smock Golf Club) for second in terms of most regional championships. Martinsville leads the list with 21 regional titles.
The Millers will be making their 28th appearance at the state meet, tying them for third place with Columbus North. Lafayette Jefferson has the most state appearances with 31, followed by Carmel with 30.
The Royals had the top individual at the regional: Yanah Ralston scored a 69 to earn medalist honors at this regional for the second time. Rolston won in 2019, when she was playing at Heritage Christian.
“I played pretty good,” said Rolston. “My short game was pretty solid and putting, so I think that’s how I got some birdies.”
Rolston played bogey-free golf through her first 13 holes, “so it was a pretty solid day,” she said.
The Southeastern team played consistent as well. Lauren Stewart was next in line with an 81, Ella Bui scored 82, Marissa Spreitzer added an 83 and Cora Zink scored an 84.
“We’re excited about Yanah,” said HSE coach Steve Guenin. “She had a great day today. We weren’t great today by a long shot, but we did a lot of nice things and obviously, we just did enough today. Nothing great, nothing fancy.”
Southeastern qualified for state for the 17th time in the program’s history.
“We don’t want to ever take that for granted or anything like that,” said Guenin. “We want to recognize how special it is, because it just doesn’t happen for everybody all the time. We’ll work hard to get prepared to do the best we can out there. More importantly, can we get out there and enjoy the experience and being a part of that. We’ll talk a lot about that this week, getting ready for Friday.”
Two county individuals also played at the regional. Fishers’ Lilly McVay carded an 82 and was part of a three-woman playoff for the fifth individual advancing spot. Mount Vernon’s Alaina Nugent won the playoff to advance to state. Hamilton Heights’ Ashlyn Tharp also played at the regional, scoring a 91.
Team scores: Noblesville 313, Hamilton Southeastern 315, Batesville 331, Mount Vernon 349, Lapel 350, Richmond 358, Heritage Christian 358, North Central 361, Union County 382, Delta 392, Greenfield-Central 393, Daleville 402, Park Tudor 403, New Palestine 408, Greensburg 416, Franklin County 421, Winchester 425, Rushville 445.
Meet medalist: Yanah Rolston (HSE) 34-35=69.
Noblesville scores: Caroline Whallon 40-34=74, Jordan Adam 39-38=77, Sophi Stutz 43-38=81, Olivia Anderson 39-42=81, Erin Burt 41-46=87.
Other Southeastern scores: Lauren Stewart 38-43=81, Ella Bui 39-43=82, Marissa Spreitzer 41-42=83, Cora Zink 40-44=84.
Fishers score: Lilly McVay 39-43=82.
Hamilton Heights score: Ashlyn Tharp 47-44=91.