With berths to the state championship on the line, Ashley Yun of Walnut High School took home medalist honors at the CIF/SCGA SoCal Girls High School Championship with a five-under 68 scorecard at Brookside Golf Club on Thursday.
“It’s obviously a huge accomplishment,” Yun said “Brookside used to be my home course, but I haven’t played here in a while, so it kind of felt like going back to your old house.”
About four years to be exact, though Yun’s rust was not obvious as she punched her ticket to her first state championship, which will occur next Tuesday at Poppy Hills GC. She is also the only representative from Walnut High School.
“Being the only one that made it on my team, I kind of carry pressure. I wanted to do good for my team and be able to represent my team,” Yun said. “I’m super excited to play at Poppy (Hills), considering I’ve never played there before…I hope (my teammates) keep an eye out for my name on the top of the leaderboard.”
Yun posted six birdies, crediting her touch on the green.
“I surprisingly played better than I thought,” she said. “I was able to make a lot of putts even with the green being sandy. It was kind of difficult to make sure there was no sand on my clubs or my ball. Those small details really helped me make all of my putts.”
She also noted that her driver was pivotal as well, given the narrow nature of Brookside.
“My driver definitely was a huge part of my game but the putting was also super helpful,” Yun said. “You have to be really precise with where you hit.”
Joining Yun as individual qualifiers for next week’s state championship are Anna Song of Palisades (70), Jasmine Leovao of El Camino (70), Sehee Sim of Torrey Pines (71), Charlotte Cantonis of La Jolla (71), and Annika Yturralde of Steele Canyon (71).
To determine the final three spots, a four-for-three playoff was held after four players were tied at 72. On the second playoff hole, Leigh Chien of University, Bridget Chantharath of Northwood and Catherine Rao of Oaks Christian each parred to earn their spot in the state championship.
In the concurrent team competition, the Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks) Knights defeated the defending champion, Troy High School, by 11 strokes. Notre Dame collectively shot 14-over, while Troy shot 25-over and Carlsbad secured third place at 30-over. All three teams will be represented in next week’s championship.