Lions host triangular; pick up two more wins

 The Clear Lake girls golf team opened the season with victories in two outings last week.

CL 194, GHV 203, B-G 205

 The Lions hosted a triangular meet with Garner-Hayfield/Ventura and Bishop Garrigan Tuesday, April 14. Clear Lake won with a 194, GHV was second with a 203, and Bishop Garrigan was third with a 205.

 Individual medalist was Alexa Capesius, of Garrigan, with a round of 37. Clear Lake freshman Emily Snelling was runner up medalist with a 40.
Clear Lake’s other counting  scores were Paige Backhaus (47), Maddie Hess (53) and Erin Gates (54). The two non-counting scores were Rebecca Long with 64 and Maddy Hartnett with a 73.
There were no team scores, but the Lions had three junior varsity golfers. Lauren Hewitt led the way with a 69, Peyton Huey came in with a 72 and Leah Becker finished with a 73.
  “It was good to come out of our first meet of the year with a win,” said Coach Adam Brinkman. “I know some of the girls will say they didn’t have their best day, but it was our first meet, and they stuck with it.”
The coach noted Snelling played with Alexa Capesius, one of the best in state, for her first ever high school match. “It took a few holes for Emily to get the nerves settled in, but she finished very well. I think it was a good challenge  playing with Alexa for her first meet, its a good confidence booster for her. She left a few strokes out on the course but she’s a freshman and she is going to learn from them as the season goes on,” he said.
The Garner-Hayfield/Ventura girls golf team recorded their best score of the season at the triangular.
“Our balance was able to counter Garrigan’s exceptional top two players, but not quite enough to catch Clear Lake,” said GHV Coach Todd Greiman.  “Our consistency in scoring is our strength and I’m hoping we can maintain that.”
Kim Dornbier and Whitney Watson led GHV, carding scores of 49.  Kyleigh Slaichert wasn’t far behind with a 51.  Rounding out the scoring was Madee Hejna (53), Tamara O’Hara (54) and Elly Johnston (76).

CL 188, Algona 193, IF-A 230
On Thursday, April 16, Clear Lake played at home against Algona and Iowa Falls. Clear Lake won with 188, Algona was second with a 193 and Iowa Falls-Alden was third with a 230.
Clear Lake’s Emily Snelling and Erin Gates tied for medalist honors with a pair of 43s.
“Erin played very well,” said Coach Adam Brinkman. “She was hitting  fairways and greens, and really only got herself into trouble on a couple holes. Erin can hit the ball very well, and is  going to be a fire power for us when it comes tournament time.”
Other counting scores for the Lions included a 46 from Paige Backhaus and 56 from Maddie Hess. The two non-counting scores were submitted by Rebecca Long (63) and Maddy Hartnett (71).
Again, there weren’t enough players for junior varsity team scores, but the three Clear Lake individuals were Peyton Huey (69), Leah Becker (73), and Lauren Hewitt with (80).
“As a team we were eight strokes better from our first meet, and I know that we will continue to decrease some strokes,” said Coach Brinkman. “Emily Snelling and Paige Backhaus both were having a very good round, but kind of struggled the last few holes. We’re doing a great job of playing well right away, but we are going to get better at finishing the same way. Some of girls are young, so hopefully after these first two meets we can get settled down and the nerves will go away.”