SALINA – The Hays High girls’ golf team improved their team score by seven strokes Tuesday and finished in fourth place at the 5A State Golf Championships at the Salina Municipal Golf Course.
The Indians shot a 354 in Monday’s first round then closed with a 347 on Tuesday for a 701 total which was five strokes behind third place St. Thomas Aquinas.
Kapaun Mt. Carmel won the team title with a 665, seven shots better than Mill Valley who finished second.
Senior Sierra Smith had the best improvement from day one to day two. After shooting a 104 on Monday, she bounced back with a 91 in her second round Tuesday which was the difference in Hays passing Andover on the team leaderboard.
The Indians had two medalists led by Taleia McCrae who finished in 18th place. The junior closed with an 85 after shooting an 81 in Monday’s first round.
Indian sophomore Katie Dinkel placed 19th, three strokes behind McCrae. After shooting an 86 on Monday, Dinkel closed with an 83 in the final round which included a 37 on the front nine.
Senior Sophia Garrison shot an 88 in the final round and tied for 24th.
Mill Valley’s Libby Green won the individual title. She closed with a 4-over-par 74 and finished the two-day event at 3-over-par.