Zionsville Runs Away with First State Championship; Plainfield’s Benge takes Individual Crown
Zionsville set a state finals record on Friday on its way to the team title and Plainfield’s Kayla Benge earned the individual crown to conclude the 45th Annual IHSAA Girls Golf State Finals at Prairie View Golf Club in Carmel.
The top-ranked Eagles of coach Jeff Anderson put up a first round 299 setting an 18-hole state finals record on Friday and followed with a 321 on Saturday for a two-day total of 620, tied for the fourth-best state finals mark. It was the school’s first state championship in the sport and sixth overall.
Sophomores Annabelle Pancake and Abby Thielbar both finished among the top 10 individuals to lead their team. Pancake shot a 149 (74-75) to earn fourth place overall while Thielbar ended with 154 (70-84) to finish in a three-way tie for seventh. Thielbar was tied for the lead after Friday’s first round. Junior Avery Von Dielingen finished tied for 17th at 158 (77-81), senior Claire Edwards ended tied for 25th at 162 (81-81) and senior Maggie Nobbe rounded out the Eagles contingent with a 29th place finish at 163 (78-85).
Second-ranked Westfield finished as the state runner-up for the third consecutive year at 638 and were followed by the three-time defending state champions Evansville North at 639. Columbus North was fourth at 650 and Homestead earned its highest finish ever in fifth place with 657.
Plainfield’s Benge began the day tied for third with a Friday round of 71 over the 5,741-yard course. The senior scored a pair of birdies on the front nine Saturday morning and finished her day at +2 to finish at 145 (71-74) to become the first golfer from her school – girls or boys – to win the state crown.
