Golfers place 13th at state meet

By: 
Ron Burtz

The Custer High School girls golf team’s first trip to the State A golf tournament to play as a team since their current coach was a high school golfer herself didn’t result in any awards or medals. However, coach Haley Uphoff says the young team had a positive experience which she believes will set them up for success in the years ahead.
The Custer team finished 13th overall in the state tourney held at Spearfish June 7-8 with daily scores of 513 and 483 for a grand total of 996. Sioux Falls Christian won the championship with a combined score of 719. Hot Springs placed sixth with 812 strokes.
None of the Custer golfers, which included eighth graders Jordyn Uphoff, Makenna Allen and Shauna Zacher and freshmen Lauryn Robb and Maddie Meyer, managed to make it into the top 25 but their coach was pleased with the outcome.
“I think overall it was a great experience for them,” said Uphoff noting that it helped the girls know what to expect and what they need to do to be more prepared for next time.
She said the team had made it their goal at the beginning of the season to make it to state and accomplished that. Beyond that, she said she had hoped they would each set new PRs.
“Even though they didn’t hit that I think they learned a lot,” said Uphoff, adding the experience gave them an opportunity to work out some of their first-timer nerves.
Uphoff said the girls had a motivating experience during the awards ceremony after the tourney when they started talking to golfers from Mobridge-Pollock. The other golfers asked the age of one of the Custer girls and were surprised to learn she was in eighth grade. They were even more surprised to learn the entire team was made up of eighth graders and freshmen. One of the Mobridge golfers who had placed highly in the tourney told the Custer team she had also made it to state as an eighth grader and encouraged them to “keep working hard.”
“We’re gonna come back to the state tournament and we’re gonna see you guys and you’d better win it,” the golfer reportedly told the Wildcats.
 “It was really good for the girls to hear that from somebody that’s not me,” said Uphoff, noting that’s just the kind of thing she was hoping her team would experience at state.

User login