With one round of matches remaining on Thursday morning, both teams have locked in the top two positions, while South Australia and Western Australia sit half a point outside contention.
New South Wales booked their spot in the final and a chance to go back-to-back with a dominant 7-1 win over Tasmania, before edging South Australia 4.5-3.5 in a tight afternoon contest to finish the day on 3.5 points, just half a point behind ladder leaders Victoria.
In their gruelling afternoon matchup, five of the eight matches went to the final hole, with the win ultimately decided when Ella Scaysbrook held her nerve to make par on the par-3 13th, defeating local favourite and World Amateur Golf Ranking No. 39 Raegan Denton in fading light.
“It was pretty intense, it was a bit of back and forth,” Scaysbrook said.
“Reagan and I have spent a lot of time together travelling and playing events.
“She’s always really good to play with, and it was a really friendly match, which is always nice.”
After captaining last year’s winning side, Scaysbrook is again leading from the front, remaining undefeated as she helps secure a grand final berth and move her team into the girls’ championship lead.
“It’s really high up in my achievements,” she said of last year’s win.
“This is such a different atmosphere to what we normally play because we usually play individually.
“It’s cool to come together as a team, and it’s normally the people you’re coming against, so it’s a different feeling.”
Victoria maintained their position at the top of the ladder with two 5-3 wins over South Australia and Queensland.
Hamish Farquharson has been instrumental in their campaign, winning three of his four matches, including 3&1 victories over South Australia’s Jackson Leonard and Queensland’s Chase Oberle, helping Victoria lead both the overall and men’s standings.
“It’s just good to be part of the team that’s winning and feeding off their momentum,” Farquharson said.
“Looking forward to the final – can’t wait.”
Playing in his second Interstate Teams Matches, Farquharson is eager to cap off his final appearance before commencing at the University of Washington in August, with Victoria in prime position to claim the title after finishing fifth last year.
“I really want to get on that trophy and win with the boys; that would make my year,” he said.
“I just want to soak it up as much as possible. There’s not too many opportunities you get to play in a team environment.
“Just trying to enjoy those little moments, enjoy the wins, so we’ll try to keep it coming.”
South Australia and Western Australia are locked on two team points after SA suffered two defeats, while WA impressed with a 5.5-2.5 win over Queensland and a 6.5-1.5 victory over Tasmania.
Queensland and Tasmania are still searching for their first win, though their final-round clash will guarantee at least one breakthrough result.
In the men’s championship, South Australia remain in contention if they defeat Tasmania and Victoria falls to New South Wales. Meanwhile, New South Wales and Victoria will face off for the women’s title in the morning before meeting again in the afternoon grand final for the overall championship.
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