Morgan Rode sports@newmedia-wi.com
Bonduel senior Jessie LaBerge and Shawano sophomore Taylor Johnson concluded their standout seasons on the golf course over the past couple of days while taking part in sectional play.
LaBerge fired a round of 104 at the Division 2 Xavier Sectional at Ridgeway Country Club in Neenah on Monday.
LaBerge shot a 50 on the front nine and 54 on the back nine and finished tied for 13th as an individual. She finished nine shots behind the third and final individual state qualifier.
“The conditions yesterday definitely made the course more difficult,” LaBerge said Tuesday. “Luckily, it didn’t start raining hard until the 14th hole. I hit the ball well throughout the whole match yesterday, but the tough greens caused some high scores.”
Despite falling short of the ultimate goal of state, LaBerge still enjoyed a memorable season.
“This season was the most fun I have had in golf throughout high school,” she said. “The teams in the Bay Conference are very supportive of one another, which make every match more enjoyable. I’m proud that I achieved my goal of being first team all-conference this season. The thing that I am going to remember most about sectionals is when I tee’d off on the final hole, proud that I was able to play such an amazing sport the last four years.”
Johnson carded a round of 115 at the Division 1 Green Bay Preble Sectional at Royal Scot Golf Club in New Franken on Tuesday.
She shot a 54 on the front nine and 61 on the back nine.
“I’m usually pretty long (with my shots) and since the course was so wet, it really took away a lot of the length of the shot so you really had to be a good chipper and putter today to go anywhere,” Johnson said.
Competing as a sophomore, Johnson hopes to use the experience as a building block for the coming seasons.
“It was a learning experience for sure and it was just a really cool experience to be there at such a young age and especially as an individual,” she said. “But I’m going to take what happened today and get better for next year.”