Jack Major
Staff Writer
Golf is a unique sport in the sense that you can play extremely well one match and the very next match play terribly or play even better.
The Mira Costa girls golf team unfortunately failed to advance past the second round of the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Team Competition on Thursday with a score of 422. They needed to score a 377 to make the cut. They were led by senior Ashley Kim with a score of 2-over par 74 and senior Lexi Nielsen with a 12-over par 84.
Kim, who has been playing well in her recent rounds felt that she played well today. Kim’s score was good enough to advance to the next round of the individual tournament. She understood the stakes of this round of the tournament and knew she had to play well.
“I’m glad I made it to the semifinal round of CIF,” Kim said. “I know that I have to play my game next Thursday so I can have the opportunity to go to State finals again.”
According to Kim, the girls team played an average round but knew that they needed to play well to qualify,. Despite the girl’s team losing, the team is providing a lot of support for Kim for the individual championships.
“It was unfortunate that the team was not able to qualify for the next round of the tournament,” Kim said. “But the girls’ outstanding support motivates me to play as well as I can in the individuals.”
The team strength on the day was their solid mental focus, according to Nielsen. Nielsen felt that her tee shots were the main strength of her own individual game on Monday.
“I hit a lot of tee shots well which gave me the confidence to approach the hole differently,” Nielsen said. “I left a few shots out there with my putting today, and although it wasn’t my best game, I felt like I played a solid round.”
Kim and Nielsen were backed up from an 84 by freshman Shani Waite. Nielsen also believed that although it was not their best round it was a good learning experience for the younger kids on the team.
“The course was pretty tough and I didn’t expect anything,” Nielsen said. “Overall it was a good experience for the younger players, and next year they will be more prepared because of it.”
Although the girls golf team’s season is over, the team fully supports Ashley Kim in the upcoming stages of her individual CIF tournament, according to Nielsen.
“Although it definitely stings that we lost as a team, that does not take away from Ashley’s individual accomplishment,” Nielsen said. “We love her and hope she performs to her best potential.”
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