The 2023 Colorado girls golf state championships concluded Wednesday night and one of Pueblo’s top golfers finished in the top 10 in the state for Class 4A.
The two teams representing the Pueblo area at state golf this year were Pueblo West and Rye. Pueblo County, Pueblo Centennial, Pueblo Central and Swallows Charter Academy all sent individual golfers to compete in the championship tournament.
The Class 4A tourney was held over two days at Thorncreek Golf Club in Thornton. The girls representing Pueblo in Class 4A were Sofia Contreras of Pueblo Central; Clayre Wagner, Gabi Benfatti and Kylie Sergejev of Pueblo West; Capreese Lisac of Pueblo County; and Elli Lind of Pueblo Centennial.
The sophomore standout Contreras finished the tournament with a score of 159, earning her a tie for ninth place overall.
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Contreras was happy about her showing at this year’s tournament.
“It’s been a good run so far, better than last year,” Contreras said. “I feel like I was really able to pull it all together this year and not put too much pressure on myself.”
As a freshman last year, Contreras finished the state tournament with a score of 200, putting her in 40th place.
“It means a lot to me to finish how I did,” Contreras said. “My goal was to finish in the top 10 and that’s what I did. I’m happy, but I hope to come back and achieve my goals next year. I hope to shoot in the low 70s next year and for my senior year, shoot in the low 60s. And of course, win regionals.”
Contreras said the course was tough this year, but she overcame its obstacles with some key help from those closest to her.
“It means a lot to have my dad there along with me teaching and coaching me,” Contreras said. “My coach was also there to calm me down and make me laugh and keep me focused. It was such a great experience overall.”
As for the rest of the Pueblo-area girls competing in Class 4A, Lisac finished with a score of 194, and Lind finished with a score of 214. The lone team representing Pueblo in Class 4A, Pueblo West, finished 12th out of 14 teams with a team score of 544. Wagner led the West team with an individual score of 176, while Benfatti scored a 182 and Sergejev scored a 186.
More: Pueblo Centennial golfer Elli Lind is no stranger to hard work
Class 3A featured one Pueblo-area team and one individual golfer. Rye sent Emma Garcia, Olivia Donlon, Kelsy Stribling and Kenzie Nielson to tee off at Aspen Golf Club in Aspen. The lone representative for Swallows Charter was Jodi Griffin.
Rye as a team finished 12th out of 16 teams, with Garcia the team’s highest finisher with a score of 191 overall, which was good to tie for 20th place. Donlon scored a 209, Stribling a 225 and Nielson a 229.
Griffin finished with a score of 207, earning her a tie for 37th place.
All of this year’s Class 3A athletes who competed at state golf were either sophomores or freshmen, so the future looks bright for the Thunderbolts and Spartans in the coming years.
More: Rye’s Emma Garcia seeks to return to state and bring their team along
Christopher Abdelmalek is a sports reporter for the Pueblo Chieftain and can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter: @chowebacca.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Central’s Contreras finishes in top ten at girls state golf finals