Edwardsville senior Nicole Johnson shot a 2-under-par 70 Friday to earn a share of the lead after the opening day of the Illinois Class 2A girls golf state tournament at Hickory Point Golf Course in Decatur.
Johnson and Rockford Guilford senior Kayla Sayyalinh are tied atop the leaderboard heading into Saturday’s final round. The leaders are scheduled to tee off together in a foursome at 10:15 am Saturday with St. Charles East senior Emily Charles (72) and Metea Valley senior Macey Martin (73).
Keep up with the area’s high school golfers in Illinois and Missouri as they march through the postseason series.
A 12th-place finisher in last year’s state tournament, Johnson was 3 under through the opening seven holes and fell back to 2 under with a bogey on No. 12 before pairing out.
Verbally committed to Middle Tennessee State recruit, Johnson is seeking Edwardsville’s first girls golf state medalist championship. On the boys side, Edwardsville’s Justin Hemings was the Class 3A state medalist winner in 2015.
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Four Metro East girls golfers have won state medalist titles, including Alton Marquette’s Gracie Piar last year in Class 1A. The other area girls golf medalist winners came when Illinois had only one class: Althoff’s Jill Gomric (1994), Alton Marquette’s Mary Ellen Jacobs (2002) and Belleville East’s Ashley Freeman.
In the Class 2A team race, O’Fallon shot a team score of 348 and finished 11th. Only the top eight of 12 teams advanced to play in Saturday’s final round.
Individually in 2A, Triad’s Emma Hill stands 22nd after a 76, O’Fallon’s Reagan Martin is 34th with a 78 and Mascoutah’s Sophia Florek is 42nd after a 79.
Class 1A girls
In the Class 1A girls state tournament at Red Tail Run in Decatur, Waterloo sophomore Reese Kite is tied for third individually after a 1-over-par 73 and Althoff junior Addison Laramore is tied for seventh after a 3-over 75.
The 1A girls co-leaders after Rockford Boylan’s Ella Greenberg and Mount Carmel’s Mady Young, who each shot 69.
Also individually in 1A, Waterloo’s Calli Smith and Father McGivney’s Sarah Hyten are tied for 15th with 78s.
In the 1A team standings, Columbia — making its first state team appearance — turned in a score of 363 and qualified seventh for Saturday’s final round. Defending champ Mount Carmel leads with a 307.
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