Vote for the Florida Power and Light athlete of the week (Jan.26-Jan.31)
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For Missy Perdue, the results followed the work.
The freshman was named Bay County Girls Golfer of the Year after a standout debut season that included a county and district championship.
“It means a lot,” Perdue said. “It’s nice to be recognized when you put a lot of hard work into something you love. I really enjoy doing what I do.”
Despite being one of the youngest competitors in the county, Perdue quickly established herself as one of its most reliable players. Her preparation, she said, was key — especially when it came to learning courses before tournament play.
“Before tournaments, especially before county, we would go and play the golf course first,” Perdue said. “We’d have a practice round where we looked over the course and saw what the greens were like and stuff. That really helped how we all played.”
That attention to detail paid off during the postseason, as Perdue helped lead her team to the Bay County championship, a moment she considers the highlight of her season.
“The whole team winning county is my highlight, it was pretty fun,” she said.
Perdue’s individual success never overshadowed her team-first mindset, a trait that stood out throughout her freshman campaign. While the accolades followed, she said the enjoyment of the game and competing alongside her teammates remained the driving force.
Coach of the Year: Keith Roberts, Rutherford
Keith Roberts was named Girls Golf Coach of the Year after building Rutherford’s girls’ golf program from the ground up and guiding its rapid growth in just its second season. With a focus on development, positivity and enjoyment of the game, Roberts helped turn a small, inexperienced roster with limited resources into a confident and competitive team.
All-County girls golf
1st Team All County: Madison Humphrey (Sr., Arnold), Bree Lewis (Fr., Bay), Avery Barnes (Sr., Bozeman), Ivy Kirvin (Sr., Bozeman), Isabell Davila (So., Mosley), Tinsley Johnson (Sr., Mosley), Ella Tryon (Sr., North Bay Haven), Missy Perdue (Fr., North Bay Haven)
2nd Team All County: Hayden Hamilton (Fr., Bay), Gracelyn Sovel (So., Bay), Abigail Aland (Sr., Bay), Ainslee Billingsley (So., Bozeman), Jemma Chizmar (Fr., Mosley), Lucy Doolittle (Jr., Mosley), Madelyn Doolittle (Fr., Mosley), Natalie Castillo (Fr., Rutherford)
Banji Bamidele is a sports reporter for the Panama City News Herald. He can be reached at abamidele@gannett.com or through X, formerly known as Twitter, @AdebanjiBamide1.