BOWLING GREEN — Kennedy Thacker fired an 84 to lead the Perrysburg girls golf team to a second place finish in the Northern Lakes League Championship’s Buckeye Division on Monday, while Bowling Green High School finished fifth in the Cardinal Division.
“I think I did pretty well,” Thacker said. “I started off OK, and it got better in the middle of the round. I think I came back at the end, and it really helped my score. My putting could have been better, but I think everything else was working in my favor.”
Thacker’s score helped Perrysburg to a 373 finish as a team, which gave the Yellow Jackets a spot just behind Anthony Wayne in the Buckeye Division standings. Findlay, Northview and Whitmer rounded out the order of finish, and that was the same order the teams finished overall including regular season performance.
“I think it was gritty that they came back after having an average practice round,” Perrysburg head coach Ken Thacker said. “We had some other personal bests today, and we were able to do what we wanted to do. We set a goal to finish in the top three and finished second overall, so we met all those goals and checked those boxes.”
With their performances, Thacker and Ella Calvin (93) finished First Team All-NLL, while Samy Thodeti’s 97 helped her earn Second Team All-NLL recognition. Sophomore Izzy Fick also had a personal-best on the front nine per her head coach.
Lauren Yoder also shot a 99 from the No. 3 spot in the lineup.
“I think we’ve exceeded all of our expectations,” Ken Thacker said. “We set a goal, met it and even beat that goal. Any time you can meet your goals and beat them, you have to be happy with that.
“We did what we wanted to do. We wanted to work on the short game and play our best golf at the end of the year. We did that today. Going into sectionals, I think we have a lot of confidence.”
Over in the Cardinal Division, Avery Harris shot a 103 out of the four spot in the lineup to help lead Bowling Green to a fifth place finish with a 427. Southview (366) finished first, while the Bobcats also finished fifth in the overall season standings.
BG’s No. 1, Sophie Fruth, wasn’t far behind Harris with a 105, and she earned Second Team All-NLL recognition.
“Sophie was top-notch (this year),” BG head coach Paige Bulkeley. “Her improvement from when she was a freshman has been immense. She’s my senior captain, the leader of the team.
“She takes care of the team when I’m doing stuff, and she knows what’s going on. She loves that role. She’s really improved and taken on some good stuff.”
Annie Urban (107), Deanna Burt (112) and Piper Stutzman (133) rounded out the BGHS lineup.
With a team that features four seniors, Bulkeley was pleased with how her team gelled this year, and she was especially pleased with how her younger players competed on a course they hadn’t seen before.
“I love how the team has bonded because I have a freshman and a sophomore along with our seniors,” Bulkeley said. “They’ve really gotten to be good friends outside golf. They have a good time.
They enjoy playing, and they show up all the time. I can’t be upset about that. They make me happy.
We have fun, and they played good golf.”
Anthony Wayne’s Sophia Stanton, who shot a 73, and Southview’s Sydney Sutton, who shot an 81, were named the NLL’s Buckeye and Cardinal Division Player of the Year recipients, respectively.
FULL RESULTS
• Buckeye Division
Team Standings
1. Anthony Wayne – 356
2. Perrysburg – 373
3. Findlay – 376
4. Northview – 408
5. Whitmer – 439
Perrysburg Individuals
Score, Buckeye Division Finish
Kennedy Thacker – 84, 2nd place
Ella Calvin – 93, T-5th place
Samy Thodeti – 97, T-10th place
Lauren Yoder – 99, 12th place
Izzy Fick – 105, T-18th place
Emerie Quienton – 135, 28th place
• Cardinal Division
Team Standings
1. Southview – 366
2. Clay – 397
3. Fremont Ross – 402
4. Napoleon – 406
5. Bowling Green – 427
6. Springfield – 439
*Napoleon and Fremont Ross flipped positions in final season standings, which included results from the regular season.
Bowling Green Individuals
Score, Cardinal Division Finish
Avery Harris – 103, 15th place
Sophie Fruth – 105, 17th place
Annie Urban – 107, T-20th place
Deanna Burt – 112, 25th place
Hayley Pool – 117, 27th place
Piper Stutzman – 133, 35th place