By Nick Gerhardt
Northfield welcomed some of the best teams in the state to Willingers Golf Club Wednesday to test its mettle and the Raiders showed they’re capable of competing.
Northfield, ranked No. 12 by the Minnesota Golf Association, captured third place with a team score of 353. The Raiders finished behind tournament champion and second-ranked Wayzata, which shot 328, and seventh-ranked East Ridge, which shot 339.
Northfield senior Emerson Garlie led the team with an 8-over 80 on the day. She finished tied for fourth overall with East Ridge’s Ella Whinnery. Section 1AAA rival Jovie Ordal of Lakeville South claimed medalist honors with a 4-over 76. Wayzata’s second-ranked Saachi Deskmukh took second place with a 5-over 77 and Woodbury’s Waverly Yang shot 78 to finish third.
The field included 16 ranked golfers. Garlie ranks No. 15 while Ordal ranks sixth. Whinnery ranks No. 47 and Yang ranks No. 80. Garlie and Ordal squared off at last year’s Section 1AAA tournament where Garlie claimed the section crown. Ordal and the Cougars walked away with the team title to advance to the state tournament. At the state tournament Ordal finished third while Garlie took seventh.
Garlie overcame a bumpy 5-over front nine to find two birdies on the back nine for a 3-over 39. She capped her round with a tap-in birdie on No. 18 following a second shot 5-wood from 200 yards out that reached the front fringe. A pin-high chip allowed her to finish tied for fourth.
Northfield sophomore Karina Johnson shot 82 to finish tied for seventh. Johnson finished 4-over on the front nine after double bogeys on Nos. 8 and 9, but she played par golf on the first seven holes. She parred six of the back nine holes for a 42.
Sister Annika Johnson shot 92 as the Raiders’ No. 3 golfer to finish tied for 22nd. She played bogey golf much of the round. Alivia Kortuem shot 99 to finish 37th and round out the scoring for Northfield.
The competition helped the Raiders get more of a feel for big tournaments, but more importantly it helped send a message to the rest of Section 1AAA. Northfield finished 25 shots ahead of the other Section 1AAA teams at the tournament. Section foes Farmington, Lakeville North and Lakeville South all finished with team scores of 378. The Raiders reached the Class AAA state tournament from 2010 to 2011. Northfield has advanced an individual golfer to the state tournament every year since 2008.
TEAM RESULTS
1. Wayzata 328
2. East Ridge 339
3. Northfield 353
4. Eastview 360
5. Farmington 378
5. Lakeville North 378
5. Lakeville South 378
8. Woodbury 384
9. Eden Prairie 385
10. Austin 386
11. Albert Lea 402
12. Winona 420
13. Faribault 437
14. Rochester Century 448
15. Burnsville 465
INDIVIDUALS
1. Jovie Ordal, Lakeville South 76
2. Saachi Deskmukh, Wayzata 77
3. Waverly Yang, Woodbury 78
4. Emerson Garlie, Northfield 80
4. Ella Whinnery, East Ridge 80
6. Mackinnie Coburn, Eden Prairie 81
7. Lauren Chambs, Wayzata 82
7. Kiersten Lawrance, Wayzata 82
7. Ailani Thiravang, Austin 82
7. Karina Johnson, Northfield 82
11. Anne Benjamin, East Ridge 84
11. Marin Keller, Winona 84
13. Jayla Mao, Farmington 86
13. Addison Schafer, Eastview 86
15. Reese Barry, Wayzata 87
15. Lucy Oberdorfer, East Ridge 87
17. Katrien Van Heyst, East Ridge 88
17. Aliyah Kleven, East Ridge 88
19. Megan Young, Eastview 90
20. Olivia Hanson, Lakeville North 91
20. Annika Reuss, Farmington 91
22. Bailey Tilley, Burnsville 92
22. Annika Johnson, Northfield 92
22. Serafina Swanson, Eastview 92
22. Anna Pitts, Eastview 92
26. Cindy Kraus, Lakeville North 93
26. Sydney Lovick, East Ridge 93
28. Charlotte Benolkin, Lakeville South 94
29. Avery Foss, Winona 95
29. Addison Herr, Albert Lea 95
29. Abby Collins, Lakeville North 95
32. Kayley Schomaker, Woodbury 96
32. Maddy Fee, Woodbury 96
34. Ashley Berven, Albert Lea 97
35. Scarlett Hedrick, Farmington 98
35. Sydney Lewis, Austin 98
37. Grace Kendrick, Lakeville North 99
37. Kali Thompson, Winona 99
37. Mariana Hager, Faribault 99
37. Alivia Kortuem, Northfield 99
42. Natalie McNeil, Eden Prairie 100
43. Paige Trebil, Eden Prairie 102
43. Anna Nowinski, Wayzata 102
47. Jessica Vogt, Albert Lea 103
47. Frances Platt, Lakeville South 103
47. Kailey Watson, Farmington 103
50. Annalisa Larson, Northfield 104
50. Lucy Annis, Austin 104
50. Jaclyn Ianfolla, Eden Prairie 104
53. Jersey Hausen, Faribault 105
53. Peyton Everson, Lakeville South 105
53. Lia Kaufman, Burnsville 105
53. Kennedy Eriquez, Eden Prairie 105
53. Gracie Greenman, Austin 105
58. Addison Hedrick, Eastview 106
59. Paige Rasmussen, Albert Lea 107
59. Chloe Friesz, Farmington 107
59. Danica Sorem, Northfield 107
59. Elizabeth Youngman, Rochester Century 107
63. Haley Rasmussen, Eastview 108
63. Kayla Gramlow, Wayzata 108
63. Ayva Murray, Albert Lea 108
66. Tea McEachern, Rochester Century 109
67. Alaina Baumgartner, Lakeville North 111
68. Alana Hansen, Farmington 112
70. Phoebie Noha, Woodbury 114
71. Evie Dawson, Albert Lea 115
71. Samara Simdar, Woodbury 115
73. Addison Thibodeau, Faribault 116
74. Meredith Umbreit, Faribault 117
75. Lily Winge, Woodbury 119
76. Kasey Morrissey, Rochester Century 120
77. Claire Stier, Lakeville South 122
78. Cora Erickson, Rochester Century 123
79. Evie Burchill, Burnsville 124
80. Katelin Clemens, Lakeville South 128
81. Claire Anderson, Faribault 130
82. Malia LaCanne, Faribault 131
83. Aubrey Ebertowski, Winona 142
84. Allison Oxborough, Burnsville 144
85. Kate Heger, Burnsville 145