Oklahoma high school girls golf: Norman North's Juliana Hong atop Class 6A leaderboard

STILLWATER — Juliana Hong played her best golf at the beginning of the day.

The Norman North sophomore made three birdies through the first five holes at Stillwater Country Club, and her strong start carried her to a narrow lead Monday in the Class 6A girls golf state tournament.

Hong carded a 70 to sit just ahead of Stillwater senior Lucy Darr and Jenks senior Isabella Suttee, who each shot a 71. As Hong drew her putter from her bag on the 18th hole, she wasn’t sure where she stood.

“I don’t look at the leaderboard because it kind of messes with me,” Hong said. “So I didn’t know anything. I’m just trying to make the best score I can on every hole.”

In the team standings, host Stillwater leads with a 301, while two-time defending state champion Jenks sits four strokes back. Edmond North is in third place with a 324.

Individually, three Pioneers finished the first round in the top six. While Oklahoma State signee Darr leads Stillwater, junior Amy Reavis is tied for fourth with a 74 and sophomore Nikki Pitts is in sixth place with a 75.

“We started out a little bit shaky, just some nerves and things,” Stillwater coach Angela Knott said. “They settled down really well and played some really great golf the rest of the day, so we’re really pleased with what they did today.”

Although the Pioneers are familiar with Stillwater Country Club, Knott said they typically practice on the front nine holes more than the back nine. Starting on the back nine Monday provided a bit of a challenge, but they persevered.

Hong had a different experience, starting on the front nine. Despite a double bogey on the 12th hole and a bogey on the 13th, she bounced back to match par the rest of the way, relying on lessons from her freshman season.

“You have to hold it together,” Hong said. “Last year, when I had a bad hole, it kind of messed me up, but I learned to shake it off.”

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Class 3A: Sequoyah Tahlequah dominates the green on Day 1

Sequoyah Tahlequah figured it would endure some adversity heading into the state tournament.

The Indians began their prep for the week on Saturday but only managed to finish three holes due to the weather. The slick green caused even more problems the next day when the team tried to practice before the tournament started on Monday.

Yet, after traveling 160 miles west to Lincoln Park Golf Course, Sequoyah Tahlequah finished the first round of the Class 3A girls' state tournament Monday with a total score of 330.

"The course we were able to practice on Saturday and Sunday was different from the course we saw today," Sequoyah Tahlequah coach Justin Brown said. "We had to make some adjustments that worked in our favor, but there's a lot of golf left. So we'll head back out to the putting green afterward to try to get some things fixed for tomorrow."

The Indians have two golfers, junior Beans Factor and senior Kodee Bearpaw-Pritchett, in the top 15.

"One of the things that I did really well was stay in the fairway," Factor said. "There are still some things I need to figure out and progress at so I can be in a better place tomorrow. I loved how encouraging everyone was today. We really want to be able to call ourselves champions."

Megan Kalapura of Tulsa Holland Hall sits atop the leaderboard with a 66. Lorelai Efaw of Tulsa Cascia Hall is second at 70, while Elle Standlee of Prague was third with a 72.

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Class 5A: McGuinness leads after 1st round

Natalie Blonien doesn’t compete for Bishop McGuinness, but McGuinness coach Mark Veneklasen wants her success to inspire his team.

“She’s a gem of a person and a heck of a golfer,” Veneklasen said. “So I’m going to tell my girls, ‘Hey, it can be done. If she can do it, you guys can do it.’”

Although the distinct features of Muskogee Golf Club challenged most competitors in the Class 5A girls golf state tournament, Altus senior Blonien finished the first round atop the leaderboard. The Arkansas signee shot a three-under 68 for a nine-stroke advantage.

While Blonien differentiated herself from her competitors, McGuinness had the best first-round team performance. The Fighting Irish stand in first place with a 347. Duncan is second with a 365, and reigning champion Carl Albert is third with a 367.

Last season, McGuinness finished as the Class 4A runner-up with Abbie Justiz winning the individual title and Allie Justiz placing second. This year, in a higher classification, the Justiz sisters continue to lead the Fighting Irish. Allie, a senior, shot a 77 to finish the first round in second place, while Abbie carded an 80 for fourth.

Veneklasen said his team has little experience at Muskogee Golf Club, so McGuinness had to adjust on the fly. He described the course as “intimidating” with hazards scattered throughout it and massive trees looming over the fairways.

“The course today, it played long, and it is a difficult course,” Veneklasen said. “My players didn’t play real well. We got in trouble, and somehow, they hung on.”

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Class 2A: OCA’s Avery Haddock soars atop leaderboard

Turner is setting itself up for another Class 2A team title, but the individual leader represents a different school.

Oklahoma Christian Academy senior Avery Haddock shot a three-over 73 to stand atop the leaderboard at the end of the first round. She started on the back nine and birdied the 11th hole for an early boost.

“She’s extremely consistent,” said OCA coach Brandon McCool. “Any time she put herself in a tough position, she made a great recovery shot, a good putt. She just didn’t really compound any mistakes, and she didn’t have many mistakes in the first place, which is always nice.”

Reigning individual champion Jaci Hartman of Turner sits five strokes back from Haddock, while fellow Turner seniors Braylee Foster and Josey Cavitt are tied for third.

Defending team champion Turner finished the first round with a dominant 72-stroke lead. Mooreland stands in second place, and Hobart is third.

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Class 4A: Fort Gibson takes big lead on day one

Fort Gibson had a dominant opening round at Winter Creek Golf & Country Club in Blanchard.

The Tigers shot a 38-over 330 and had four players in the top nine as they ended Monday with a comfortable lead.

Leading all golfers was senior Katelyn Rigsby (2-over 75), while senior Layne Ailshie was third at 8-over 81. Not too far behind were sophomores Gracie Young and Teagan Graves, who were ninth at 14-over 87, while sophomore McKenna Torix was 16th at 17-over 90.

Fort Gibson finished the first round 26 strokes ahead of second place Marlow and 32 ahead of third place Clinton.

Five strokes behind Rigsby in the individual standings was senior Kya Lamb of Dickson.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma HS girls golf 2024 state tournament opening round results