DeGood advances to second day at state, finishes tied for 35th

The Colby High School Lady Eagles’ postseason ended at the KSHSAA 3-2-1A state tournament, where senior Cora DeGood qualified for the second day and improved her score by three strokes to finish tied for 35th.

Colby placed fourth at the regional at Cimarron Golf Club on Oct. 13, shooting a 406. Syracuse won with a 364, followed by Goodland at 388 and Cimarron at 398. The top three teams advanced, leaving Colby eight strokes short of a team berth. DeGood qualified individually with a 97, placing 11th.

At a school send-off before DeGood left for state, head coach Rick Williams told students the regional had been especially difficult. He pointed to senior Lakyn Sims finishing just one stroke short of qualifying and said Colby’s golfers had competed well against a deep field.

Williams also highlighted what DeGood’s qualification represented: she began playing golf as a freshman and had worked her way back to the state tournament through her effort, athletic ability and coachability. He recalled that she narrowly missed the cut at state last year as an individual.

At Tallgrass Golf Club, DeGood shot a 105 on the first day, qualifying for the second round. She then improved by three strokes with a 102 on day two, finishing tied for 35th. Her two-day total was 207.

Williams had told students that making the cut was DeGood’s first goal at state. He said golf gives players little control over their competitors: they can only post the best score they can. By qualifying for the second day and lowering her score in the final round, DeGood met that goal and finished her season with a stronger round.

At the regional, DeGood parred holes 7, 10 and 13. She limited her worst score on the front nine to a triple bogey on hole 6, then played hole 15 for a bogey after making the turn.

Sims tied for 12th with a 98, one stroke behind DeGood. She recorded pars on holes 6, 10, 14 and 16, and improved by two strokes on the back nine after shooting a 50 on the front. Sophomore Landrie McKee tied for 17th with a 104.

Senior Alayna Hrnicek placed 22nd with a 107, and junior Ali Cox tied for 23rd with a 108. Senior Morgan Hills began the regional but had to leave because of illness. Colby had three golfers in the top 20 and two more in the top 25, but DeGood was the team’s only state qualifier.

Silver Lake won the state team championship with a 365, followed by Caney Valley at 377 and St. Mary’s Colgan at 383.

Williams told students Colby was proud of its girls’ golf tradition and of DeGood’s opportunity to represent the school at state. The team fell just short of advancing together, while DeGood’s two-day performance capped the season with a place in the state tournament’s second round.