Here are 12 Columbus-area high school girls golfers to watch this fall
Columbus Academy girls golf coach Maggie Freytag is acutely aware that her team wears a bull's-eye this season as defending Division II state champions.
She hopes a lasting remnant of that achievement, one that came in just the program’s fourth season, is the realization of what it will take to raise the trophy again Oct. 14 at Ohio State’s Gray Course.
“I know that the girls would love to have another opportunity to compete in the state tournament, and they know that they will need to put in a lot of hard work to get there,” Freytag said. “(But) we are looking at this year as a brand-new season, one in which we will work hard and give it our best effort.
“We have some strong leaders.”
Senior Angela Hu, who finished sixth at state to lead the Vikings to a 23-shot victory over runner-up Sugarcreek Garaway, leads a group of returnees rounded out by classmate Sydney Fortney and junior Caroline Zeiger. Sophomore Ella Tang and freshmen Rosemary Jenkins and Eva Lim will vie for the final two spots on varsity.
In Division I, Dublin Jerome graduated 2021 individual champion Audrey Ryu from a team that finished one shot behind first-place Centerville at state, but seniors Medha Pothuru and Addie Yarbrough and juniors Alexa Prettyman and Ellie Ryu should help anchor a lineup coach C.D. Butcher calls his deepest ever.
Sophomore Lorna Zhang averaged below par in tryouts, as did Prettyman, and should make an impact.
“Easily (from Nos.) 1-6, this is the best team I’ve ever had. It’s not even a discussion,” Butcher said. “This team isn’t looking to come out of the shadows. They want to come out on fire. I think we’re good enough to compete (for a state championship).”
New Albany, which finished third after winning the previous four team titles, returns four of its top five, led by sophomore phenom Mia Hammond.
Boys golf: 12 Columbus-area competitors to watch this fall
In Division II, Westfall and Circleville return much of their lineups from teams that finished first and second, respectively, in the Southeast District.
Here are 12 central Ohio girls golfers to watch this fall:
Bella Anderson, Worthington Kilbourne
Anderson personified a strong finish to her freshman season. After playing junior events, Anderson’s first 18-hole round was a 63 during a Division I sectional at Oakhaven. She then was district runner-up with a 69 and tied for 15th place at state. Anderson polished her game this summer in several junior tournaments and should anchor the Wolves’ lineup along with senior Maya Hutchinson.
Skylar Dean, Olentangy Orange
A junior and returning Division I state qualifier, Dean looks to be the anchor of a young but promising Pioneers team. Dean placed fourth at district, tied for 15th at state and averaged 69.67 in the OCC-Buckeye tournament last fall. She was Orange’s first representative at state since 2018, and this season is one of two juniors in the top four along with Lauren Powell. Sophomores Keira Kwak and Adeline Ricker also should make immediate impacts.
Mia Hammond, New Albany
The sophomore, whose schedule with the Eagles will be limited because of non-scholastic tournaments, is coming off a summer that saw her shoot 6-under par and tie for 26th place in her first LPGA event, the Dana Open in suburban Toledo. Hammond averaged 69.3 per 18 holes a season ago, won district and tied for fourth at state.
Angela Hu, Columbus Academy
The senior is stepping into the top role for the Vikings, who won their first Division II state championship last fall by 23 shots. Hu, who typically filled the No. 2 spot as a junior behind 2023 graduate Grace Luo and was on the Vikings’ first state-qualifying team in 2021, won sectional, tied for fifth at district and tied for sixth at state.
Gracie James, Watkins Memorial
A senior, James will seek her second Division I state tournament berth in three seasons and third consecutive district appearance. James averaged 72.4 per 18 holes a year ago and tied for 12th at district. She tied for 11th at state in 2021 and holds the Cumberland Trail record for women with a 68.
Kristina Ma, Columbus School for Girls
The junior will try for her second Division II state berth after coming up just short last season. Ma finished third at district a year ago, four shots shy of the only berth to state, after a freshman year that saw her win district and shoot two rounds in the 70s at state to place third. Three of the Unicorns’ top five returned from last year’s district runner-up team.
Alexa Prettyman, Dublin Jerome
The junior emerged from tryouts as a potential No. 1 for the Celtics, who were Division I state runners-up by a stroke in 2022 behind Centerville (613-614). Prettyman averaged 75 in the OCC-Cardinal tournament and finished fifth at sectional, 12th at district and tied for 47th at state. Prettyman tied for 23rd at state as a freshman.
Emerson Purcell, New Albany
Like Hammond, Purcell will play a partial schedule early in the season because of outside events. A senior and Wyoming commit, Purcell has been a staple in the Eagles’ lineup each of the past three seasons. She averaged 74.4 per 18 holes a year ago and was OCC-Central co-Player of the Year. She tied for 10th at district and tied for eighth at state.
Ellie Ryu, Dublin Jerome
The junior will challenge for the top spot in Jerome’s deep lineup, coming off a 2022 season in which she averaged 74 in the league tournament, finished fourth at sectional, tied for 18th at district and made the top-10 at state with a tie for eighth place. She also was 17th at state as a freshman.
Elaina Seeley, Circleville
The senior averaged 38.0 per nine holes and 80.3 in 18-hole tournaments a year ago, leading the Tigers to the cusp of their first Division II state tournament. Seeley was second at sectional and fifth at the Southeast District tournament, where the team finished second to Pickaway County rival Westfall. She shot a program-record 69, including a 30 on the back nine, on Friday in the Fairfield Union Invitational at Pumpkin Vine.
Meadow Tian, Olentangy
Now a sophomore, Tian became the face of the first Braves team to make the Division I state tournament, averaging 67.7 in the OCC-Buckeye tournament, shooting a course-record 66 on the second day at state and placing seventh individually. The team was sixth. Tian’s 66 tied her own program record. Also last year’s OCC-Buckeye Player of the Year, Tian’s summer included a win in the American Junior Golf Association Bluegrass Junior Tournament.
Paige Weiss, Westfall
The Mustangs’ top golfer during their first state appearance since 2020, Weiss averaged 40.8 per nine holes and 85.5 for 18 a year ago. Her two-day total of 171 at state, which tied for 23rd place, was the best score for a sophomore in the field. She won five Southern Ohio PGA Junior events this summer, including shooting rounds of 68 and 69.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: 12 central Ohio high school girls golfers to watch this fall
