West Union senior Olivia Lewis gets set to tee off during the second day of play at the OHSAA Division II Girls State Tournament at the Firestone Country Club in Akron. (Photo by Lisa Gannon-Lewis)

West Union senior Olivia Lewis gets set to tee off during the second day of play at the OHSAA Division II Girls State Tournament at the Firestone Country Club in Akron. (Photo by Lisa Gannon-Lewis)

By Mark Carpenter

People’s Defender

A very successful season on the links came to a close on Monday for Coaches Marci Nehus and Emily McCarty and the West Union Lady Dragons golf squad. But that season end came at the game’s highest level for high school golfers. On Sunday and Monday (October 13-14), the Lady Dragons were part of the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division II Girls State Tournament, held at the prestigious Firestone Golf Club in Akron.

The Lady Dragons didn’t go into last weekend’s play with high expectations, but with the goal of soaking up every bit of the experience of being part of the state tournament, something no other girls team in school history or the history of the Southern Hills Athletic Conference had done.

At the state tourney, battling the elements of cold winds and rain, the Lady Dragons placed 12th overall and their top golfer over the 36 holes was senior Olivia Lewis, who shot 101 the first day and 98 the second for a two-day total of 199. Junior Nina McCann went 104-109, sophomore Eva DeMint finished at 112-109, junior Emmy Stapleton finished at 114-111 and sophomore Annabelle McIntosh carded 115-117.

Columbus Academy won the Division II state championship, with Cincinnati Madeira finishing second.

Trips tot he state tournament can be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but the Lady Dragons return a majority of their players and will go into 2025 looking for a coveted return trip. As far as 2024 goes, the West Union girls won the Adams County Cup, won the SHAC Tournament and were district runners-up.

“I’m very rpoud of all of their accomplishments from the whole season,” said Coach Nehus.