Cougar girls golf takes 13th at state

Sometimes it's not about winning the game, but how you finish. For Niwot High School graduated senior Kate Jones, her final outing as a Cougar, and her second round at last week's Colorado Girls State 4A Golf Tournament, was one to remember.

After struggling through a disappointing first-round 104, Jones shaved off 16 strokes in Wednesday's second round, carding a solid 88 at the par-72 Thorncreek Golf Course in Thornton. That was her best round in three state tournament appearances and her third-best round ever in tournament play.

"The first round was just rough. I had been so busy with graduation and all the celebrations and really had no time to practice," Jones admitted. "The difference (in the second round) was that I had tons of family and friends out there supporting me. That was really the motivation. I just wanted to make them proud of me."

Jones' teammates, sophomore Alena Kasanicky and junior Mina O'Dell, finished the tournament with two-day totals of 166 and 190, respectively. The Cougars finished 13th out of 15 teams that participated in the competition. For the second consecutive year, the girls from Erie High School ran away with the team trophy, finishing this year's championship with a blistering combined total of 441 -- 49 strokes ahead of second place Durango High School.

While a lot of good obviously came in Jones' second round, the highlight was a chip-in from 15 feet off the green for par on the par-5 14th hole. "I'd never done that before," Jones said of the chip-in.

The 2023 graduate will be attending Elon University in Elon, North Carolina, in the fall. She plans to continue playing golf on the school's club team.

The highlight for teammate Kasanicky came on day one when she sunk a long birdie putt on the eighth hole. It was the shot that seemed to ignite the sophomore.

"That was a highlight and very important because I was struggling with my putting up to that point," she said. "But I made the long downhill putt for the birdie and that really started to get me going."

Kasanicky's first round 84 couldn't keep pace with the 74 she shot in the first round of the 2022 state tournament as a freshman; but that wasn't totally a surprise. The Cougars' No. 1 player spent this past spring doing double duty, running distance races for the Niwot girls track team – 800, 1600 and 3200 meters -- while playing a reduced tournament schedule for the golf team.

"I only played two regular season tournaments and then regionals, but I was focusing more on track this year," Kasanicky explained. "I definitely didn't go to as many of the golf practices because of track. I felt I did pretty good actually (at the state tournament). My long game was good. I was driving pretty well. My short game was not as sharp as I'd like, but it wasn't too bad.

She added, "I was hoping for a little better (scores). Breaking 80 is always my goal, but I was pretty happy overall."

Kasanicky's two-day total of 166 placed her 18th in the individual standings, just seven shots out of the top 10. Despite the reduced focus on golf, her state finish and regular season performances earned her Second Team All State recognition, matching her 2022 accomplishment as a freshman.

Now the question will be whether or not she returns next spring to play golf for coach Ed Weaver.

"I'd like to (do both track and golf), but I'm just not sure," she said. "I have to talk to Ed about it, and my track coaches, and see what will work out. I'd definitely like to do both, but track is more of my priority, I guess."