The Daviess County Lady Panthers showcased why they are one of the top girls’ golf teams in the area on Tuesday, winning the City-County tournament at Ben Hawes Golf Course by 71 strokes on Tuesday. Daviess County’s four players posted the top four scores individually.
DC got scoring from Claire Reynolds, Briley Billingsley, Baylie Billingsley, and Kennedy Minton with rounds of 81, 82, 84, and 88, respectively.
After the first day of the tournament, Reynolds and both Billingsley sisters were tied with a 42. On the back nine, Reynolds shot a 39 to secure herself medalist honors.
The biggest story of the day for the Lady Panthers was the performance of Kennedy Minton, a 7th grader who shot a 41 on the back nine – the third-best score of the day.
“Kennedy Minton, I was so impressed with her,” Daviess County head coach Jonas Billingsley said. “She shot a 41 today, which would have been third place overall today team-wise and fourth place overall for both days. I’m tickled to death to see her come out and not get overwhelmed playing with upperclassmen. For her, it’s just repetition. She’s also a cheerleader, but it’s getting to the point in cheer season where she can get out and play more. A few practices made a little swing tweak with her driver and she’s gotten a lot more distance. She hit the ball really well today.”
Led by Hannah Robbins’s 92, the Lady Aces finished second, shooting a 406. Emma Lanham, Marley Baize, and Catherine Ray shot 99, 101, and 114, to round out the team’s top four scores.
With regionals quickly approaching, head coach Jenny Burns wanted to see her team continue improving.
“I thought they did pretty well,” Burns said. “We actually had our best round as a team yesterday. Today, I think they are pretty close to it so overall I am really happy with how they did.”
Moving forward, Burns noted that her team needs to keep working at their short game, which has been the team’s primary focus all year long.
With the pain of not having a full roster to compete as a team in the past, Owensboro head coach Bryan Kasey was thrilled to see his girls compete against the best talent in the county, finishing with a 442.
“I was really proud because we had four girls playing which would be considered a team,” Kasey said. “The last few years we just had a few participants so for me that was the major hurdle.”
Ryann Kasey led the way for the Lady Devils with an 89. She was followed by Olive Harrison’s 115, Hampton Gaddis’s 119, and Ellison Storms’s 119.
“I wanted to see the girls do the best they can,” Kasey said. “Get through the round and not focus on the other pressures of City-County. But also playing in that competitive environment. We’re heading to regionals in a couple weeks and I am trying to get them in the mindset to play in a more competitive environment.”
