CORTEZ – Even when the waters got rocky, M-CHS junior Amita Crowley knew she had the tools to right the ship.
It’s the resiliency of a seasoned golfer, and what puts Crowley and her Panther teammates on course to qualify for another state tournament.
After a tough opening half of her round at the Panther Invitational at Conquistador GC, Crowley did a complete 180, scorching the back nine with a 38 to close out an 81 to help guide M-CHS to a fourth-place team finish.
M-CHS closed out with a team score of 282, behind Durango (252) and a couple of New Mexico state title contenders – tournament champ Piedra Vista (240) and Kirtland Central (244).
Sitting just inside the top 10 after her 43 to begin the day, Crowley started her leaderboard climb after the turn, parring both 10 and 11 before narrowly missing an ace on 12 and settling for a tap-in birdie to bolster her momentum.
“I’ve always been better on the back nine on Conquistador,” reflected Crowley, “so I knew I had to lock in and battle back.”
Three more consecutive pars to follow jumped Crowley into third place, a stroke ahead of the Durango senior-junior combo of Ellie White and Jayden Craig.
Crowley found herself paired with White and Piedra Vista’s Annie Yost – the tournament medalist and defending New Mexico 5A state champion – and the intense competition brought out the best in Crowley’s game.
“I love playing with girls that are better than me – I can see how they play and adapt some of those things into my game,” said Crowley.
M-CHS classmate Afton Unrein enjoyed her best stretch of the day on the front nine, posting a 45 on her way to a round of 95 and a tie for 15th place. A pair of pars on the opening half combined with a string of four straight bogeys kept Unrein on pace for another top 20 finish.
Sophomore Dannika Goodall keeps inching closer to breaking 100, with a back nine of 49 to highlight her round of 107 and a tie for 26th. Goodall did well to avoid big numbers, as she navigated the latter half of the round with plenty of fours and fives on her card.
M-CHS’ other two golfers – junior Keira Jago and freshman Tenley Bryan – finished in a 43rd place tie, each shooting 128 while posting identical 63-65 nine-hole splits to get there.
Crowley has taken on the leadership role she inherited from last year’s senior Chesnie Patrick – and looks to help the other girls refine their game. “We’re focusing on how to approach each hole without always feeling like we have to get a par – bogeys and double bogeys can be okay, too,” said Crowley.
Both Unrein and Crowley made the state tournament last year, and the Panthers aim for another opportunity in a month to bring back a full squad. Crowley finished 13th and Unrein claimed 49th while the team took 8th in the 3A field. “I know that I’ll need to keep improving my putting,” said Crowley, “if I’m going to give myself a bunch of birdie chances, then I know I need to be able to take advantage.”
Dolores entered a pair of golfers into the tournament as the Bears get set to host their own invitational next Tuesday on the same course. Senior Siena Parr took 33rd overall with a round of 111, headlined by a 54 on her final nine holes. Classmate Samantha Abate finished four places behind with a 121, with a par on the third hole helping her total.
Durango’s Dylan Livingston and Raimee Brant took 12th and 14th overall to supplement White and Craig on their way to third place in the team standings. Yost won the individual medalist honors with a round of 73 to best KC’s Hayden Dan by three strokes.
