By Rob Kiser
Fort Loramie senior Emily Knouff already had a well-deserved reputation as one of the top girls golfers in the state.
She only added to that in the annual Lady Bucc Pink Out scrimmage at Echo Hills, shattering the tournament record with a eight-under par 65.
And in the typical humble fashion of the lefthander who tied for eighth at the Division II girls state golf tournament last fall, Knouff took it all in stride.
“I really wasn’t thinking about it,” Knouff said about her career low score. “I was just trying to play solid and shoot the best score I could.”
Which came as no surprise to her coach Mike Anthony.
“Emily (Knouff) never looks ahead — one shot at a time,” he said. “She had a great day. You never expect anyone to shoot that low.”
Starting on the 18th hole in the shotgun start, Knouff recorded a par-5 and only got better from there.
Knouff recorded five birdies on the front nine — holes 2, 5, 6, 8 and 9 — to go with her lone bogey on the par-3 third hole. That all added up to a 4-under par 32.
On the par 37 back nine, Knouff caught fire on the 11th hole, going birdie, eagle, birdie, birdie.
After a bogey on the par-3 15th, she finished with two pars for a four-under par 33 on the back nine.
“I hit driver, wedge on 12 and made about an eight-foot putt for eagle,” Knouff said. “I really wasn’t thinking about my score — maybe at the end a little bit.”
Her play helped Loramie to a third-place finish with a 383 total. Kenton Ridge won with 375 and St. Henry was second with 379.
And while only two golfers return among those who finished ahead of Knouff at state last year, she is not thinking about that.
“That (winning the state title) is not one of my goals,” she said. “I just want the team to have as good a season as we can have. If I don’t get to state, that is OK. This was a good way to start the season.”
Kenton Ridge won the team title with a 375, while St. Henry was second with a 379. Fort Loramie was third with a 383. Arcanum was fourth (408) and Versailles was fifth (410).
In addition to Knouff’s 65, Amy Eilerman shot a 50-54 — 104, Kayla Rosengarten fired a 52-55 — 107, Rylee Poeppelman carded a 52-55 — 107, Megan Koppin shot a 55-59 — 114 and Riley Middendorf finished with a 55-61 — 116.
Versailles shot a 410 team total. Lauren Durham led the way with a 39-48 — 87, Jorja Pothast carded a 52-50 — 102, Anna Groff shot a 48-55 — 103, Morgan Barlage scored a 56-62 — 118 and Taylor Martin finished with a 68-62 — 130.
New Bremen finished with a 466 team score. Sara Parker led the team with a 61-49 — 160. Claire McClurg carded a 58-56 — 114, Caylie Hall scored a 56-63 — 119, Marcella Travis shot a 62-51 — 123, Katlyn Broerman fired a 57-68 — 125 and Cassie Stacher shot a 72-68 — 140.
Russia shot 470 as a team. Maddie Borchers led the Raiders with a 43-54 — 97. Shae Borchers shot a 56-52 — 108. Raven Boerger fired a 55-60 — 115, Klaryssa O’Reilly carded a 73-77 — 150 and Hayley Supinger shot a 75-80 — 155.
Contact Rob Kiser at [email protected]
