By Katie Von Behren
Staff Writer
The Mira Costa High School girls golf team made history on Oct. 31 as it won the California Interscholastic Federation Central Division Championships at Western Hills Country Club in Chino Hills.
The girls placed first out of 18 teams by shooting a 401 overall. The team has moved to the next round of CIF and hopes to compete at state.
The second and third place of the tournament advanced to the next round of matches along with Costa. North Torrance High School finished in second place, with a 424, and Palos Verdes High School came in third, advancing with 446.
“It was a very mentally challenging course but by encouraging each other along the way, we were able to pull through with the win,” senior Megan Kim said. “Our motto for the day was shot by shot, moment for moment, and even though we could have played better, we surprised ourselves with first place.”
All of the girls had low scores, led by Megan Kim, who shot on par 72. Sophomore Andrea Lee shot two over par with 74 for the day, and freshman Ashley Kim also contributed to the team’s victory with a stroke count of 80.
“I feel that we all came together perfectly to play well as a team after practicing really hard for many weeks leading up to this very crucial match,” Lee said. “We all stayed patient and encouraged each other to just remain focused on each individual shot at every hole, which luckily paid off.”
Assisting in the Mustangs’ victory, sophomore Marni Murez shot an 82, while sophomore Veronica Chen shot an 88.
“I am extremely happy and excited about the win; being able to perform well on such a tough course is really a testament to our hard work throughout the season,” Ashley Kim said. “We have gained a lot of confidence with practice, so our goal is to focus on next week’s match and just survive long enough to move onto the next round of matches on our way to State.”
The girls finished their Bay League matches undefeated with a perfect 10-0 record, winning the league championship for the fourth consecutive year. This is the girls’ first CIF title, winning by only 23 strokes. Last year, the team took second place in CIF.
The girls competed in the CIF regionals tournament yesterday and faced 18 other teams at the Talega Golf Club in San Clemente, the results of the team’s matches were unavailable due to the time of publication.
“I am very proud and impressed with all of the girls because of their numerous accomplishments this season,” coach Timothy Kelly said. “The girls’ performance has been incredible this whole season and, after 10 consecutive wins, a Bay League title and CIF title, we plan on killing it at the next matches to advance all the way to the state level.”
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