Lina Kwon
Staff Writer
The windy weather and dry atmosphere didn’t seem to help the Mustangs claim a victory.
The Mira Costa girls golf team was unable to keep its three-game winning streak alive after losing to Peninsula High School 206-219 at the Palos Verdes Golf Club on Tuesday. The team hoped to advance to the Bay League Finals as the number one ranked team, but fell 13 strokes short.
The team captain, sophomore Shani Waite, solidly started the match by shooting a par on the third hole, but failed to keep her score low after shooting a four-over-par on the fourth hole, leading to a final score of 40. Waite said the team could’ve done a lot better than they did.
“It was definitely not our best game as a team and myself included,” Waite said. “But as long as we play aggressive and stay focused, we will get a chance at sharing the Bay League Champion title with Peninsula on Thursday.”
Junior Klara Nagy shot a five-over-par with a 40 and finished strong with a final score of 43. Her drives and putts were comparatively consistent throughout the match, but she was not happy with her score on Tuesday, Nagy said.
“I need to twitch some minor things in my swing in order to perform better in the upcoming school and non-school related tournaments,” Nagy said. “I can definitely learn from the mistakes I made today and use them to perform better next time.”
Sophomore Erica Skinner struggled during the first three holes, but eventually obtained the third best score of the day, a 44. She was backed up by a score of 46 from sophomore Isabella Walker and senior Delilah Gunn.
“Today was a tough day for the team collectively as Peninsula beat us handily,” Walker said. “I’m honestly disappointed with how I played today, but I am looking forward to playing at Harding tomorrow.”
The Mustangs’ record is now 10-4 overall and 3-1 in Bay League. The team next competes in the Bay League Finals at Harding Golf Course on Oct. 17. All seven players including Waite, Gunn, Walker, Skinner, Nagy, freshman Juliae Shoda and junior Angelica Bigler will play in an individual tournament against West Torrance, South Torrance and Peninsula High School.
“In the League Finals tomorrow, we will either be the champions or the second place because we have enough scores so far,” Cox said. “I won’t be disappointed and I know the team will do well.”
Coach Cox believes Waite and other players will be able to bounce back as a team in the Bay League Finals.
“Shani has been playing the best in the last three rounds,” Cox said. “I don’t want the players to be discouraged by their individual scores but focus on playing their best.”
Bay League Finals is an important match, as it determines how many spots the team will obtain for next year’s California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Championships. Typically, the top eight players of the League Finals move onto the CIF Individual and Team Championships, Cox said.
“Thanks to the huge success last season, the team’s got seven spots this year,” Cox said. “The four schools including Costa will compete for eight spots tomorrow, and I hope we win at least three or four of those.”
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