Ten months after snagging fourth at the Class 3A state golf championships, Prospect Ridge Academy is back to its usual antics. On Tuesday at the Broadlands Golf Course during the Metro League tournament, in fact, the Miners looked even stronger than they did last season.
In spite of a frost delay and soggy course conditions that would trip up any golfer, the Miners battled their way to second place in the team race, collecting 259 strokes in all, to just barely trail Colorado Academy’s 254. They beat out defending state champion St. Mary’s Academy by 24.
Junior Hope Torres, naturally, rocketed toward the top of the individual leaderboard for the team with a third-place finish after carding an 82, as senior Leyni Stavola (seventh, 88), senior Kate Dinges (10th, 89) and sophomore Ye Yoon Choi (11th, 91) followed behind.
Torres said that last year’s result at the state tournament only motivated the Miners more in the offseason, as each lady spent extra time on the links. All of the work they put in with their individual coaches presented itself most in their short game.
“It was a good day, but it was definitely a struggle a little bit. I think us, as a team, fought for it and we did pretty good in terms of the course and competition in the field,” Torres said concerning Tuesday’s competition. “We’ve shaved a lot of strokes. I think that’s what’s kind of getting us to be at the top in our tournaments.”
Anna Stavola, who stepped into the head coaching position after serving as an assistant last year, said she’s witnessed the biggest change in their chipping accuracy and their ability to read the greens. The Miners won each of their previous two tournaments, recording 250 strokes in their first Metro League match and 245 in the second.
They hope that very little will stand in the way of their quest for a state title, having gotten a taste of success over the two seasons prior. In 2022, nearly the same cast — save for Choi — earned the team runner-up trophy.
“What I’ve seen different this year is that these girls have really put in their time and effort over the summer, playing in the junior PGA tournaments and a lot of local tournaments,” Anna Stavola said. “They’ve all put in time and effort with coaches and really came into the season looking forward to a win this year. They know that they can do it. They’ve got their focus set on it, and I think they’re ready.”
At the same Broadlands tournament, Peak to Peak finished third in the team race with a collective score of 277. Sophomore Rihana Bhandari tied Leyni Stavola for seventh alongside Jefferson Academy freshman Paige Danforth.
Elsewhere in Colorado…
Erie, unsurprisingly, dominated the competition at Tuesday’s Cheyenne Mountain Invitational with a team score of 315. Junior Hadley Ashton shot a 4-under-par 67, as the Tigers also enjoyed two more top-10 finishes from defending state champion Logan Hale (third, 74 strokes) and junior Taylor Hale (seventh, 82). Junior Hollyn Drennen rounded out the scoring effort with a tie for 12th (92).
