Center Grove and Franklin’s girls golf teams face one another so frequently that it’s difficult to place too much importance on any one tournament.
The Johnson County championship qualifies as an exception.
"This is one you want," Trojans coach Cale Hoover said. "I’d rather win sectional than county, but I really want to win them both, and I’m sure that (Franklin coach Chris) Kacarab would say the same thing."
With wet grounds and windy conditions making for tough scoring conditions Wednesday afternoon at The Legends, the 11th-ranked Trojans put up a 336 to edge the defending champion Grizzly Cubs by four strokes to reclaim their throne.
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Maddie Heineman was the medalist with a round of 80.Â
"I tried to play every stroke at a time, and that mentality really helped me get through it," Heineman said. "I definitely had my fair share of bad shots, but I was able to hit a good shot to make up for it. I kept doing that, and I kept making good scores."
The Trojans got a balanced effort, with all five of their players finishing below 90. Meg Fosnot carded an 82, followed by Lanie DeHaven (86), Hope Davis (88) and Lauren Pagel (89).
Franklin, meanwhile, got an 81 from Ava Ray and and 82 from Liv Parramore. There was a slight dropoff after those two, with Ellie Beavins at 88, Carly Woodward at 89 and Alexa Wilkison at 95.
Ray said that the result was disappointing, but she knows there will be chances for the 14th-ranked Grizzly Cubs to get some payback.
"It’s just a matter of the day," she said. "We’re always neck and neck with them; today they might have gotten us, but next time we will get them."
Finishing a distant but comfortable third was Greenwood, which wound up with a team total of 396. Maecee Terhune led the Woodmen with an 87, while Maura Guilfoy was close behind at 90.
Indian Creek finished fourth at 444, led by a 94 from Jacqui Button. Five shots back in fifth was Whiteland, which was paced by Allie Watson’s 101.
Morgan Calhoun carded a 96 for Edinburgh, which finished sixth at 464. Greenwood Christian totaled a 475, with Ashtyn Witte’s 101 the low round for the Cougars.
For Center Grove, the focus moving forward is to continue being competitive through a grueling tournament schedule that regularly pits them against many of the state’s top-ranked teams.
"Our schedule’s tough," Hoover said. "I told the girls, it’s getting time to where we need to knock one of them off and let them know we’re here."
