WEST LAFAYETTE – Harrison senior Sophie Vandeveer ended her 18 holes drenched in sweat.
Mosquitos and other bugs nipped at Vandeveer and the other 54 golfers during the first high school sporting event of the 2024-2025 season. Temperatures reached 90 degrees with 69% humidity with small drizzles coming down.
None of the elements though could distract Vandeveer from putting together a strong opening performance at Coyote Crossing Golf Course on Monday.
Vandeveer shot an 88 (+16), tied for the fourth lowest score and helped guide the Raiders to a +89 third place finish.
“It was a good start to the season,” Vandeveer said. “I’ve been struggling all summer and it kind of just feels good to have a good score. I feel like I could’ve done a little better but it was still a great score and a good time for the girls for the first match of the season.”
Vandeveer placed second individually at the IHSAA Sectional Championships but admitted struggling to hit her drivers accurately and hit her iron shots on the fairway during her summer competitions.
It all came together for her on Monday.
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“I wasn’t really struggling out of the rough or anything and I hit a lot more greens,” Vandeveer said.
Heritage Christian of Indianapolis came away as the team winner with a collective +66. Junior Sophie Richmond of NorthWood High School won the individual title shooting a 75 (+3) — 11 strokes higher than second place winner Olivia Cook of Heritage Christian (+14).
West Lafayette finished fourth overall +95 at the tournament led by senior captain Ellie Wilcoxson.
Wilcoxson shot 91 (+19) and finished ninth individually on a team that reunites four members from last season’s team including Rija Shah, Sophie Williams, and Juliet Shaeffer. Sophomore Shreya Narayanan is the lone edition for the Red Devils’ varsity five.
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West Lafayette is the defending girls sectional champion. Shah finished third and Wilcoxson finished fourth in last year’s sectional tourney.
“I think my shots were better than what my score reflected,” Wilcoxson said. “I was hitting drivers really well and I think with the moisture changing throughout the day I think my putts were a little bit off but I played pretty well for my first tournament back.”
Twin Lakes senior Layla Sterns led her team with a score of 90 (+18) which included an accurate tee shot on the 13th hole par 3.
Sterns landed her tee shot less then three feet from the hole and tapped her putt in for birdie.
She finished the day eighth overall.
“My goal is to hit 80s by the end of the school year,” Sterns said. “I just want to try and have fun.”
McCutcheon senior Aley Brown and freshman Jaylee Gibb each shot 99 (+27).
Gibb and Brown admitted the heat and humidity made playing difficult but are looking forward to playing Tuesday at the Lafayette Jeff Booster Invite at Battle Ground Golf Club that starts at 8 a.m.
“The goal is to obviously shoot better than I did today, have fun, keep plugging along and not let the heat bother me,” Brown said.
Ethan Hanson is the sports reporter for the Journal & Courier in Lafayette. He can be reached at ehanson@gannett.com, on Twitter at EthanAHanson and Instagram at ethan_a_hanson.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: High school girls golf led by West Lafayette, Harrison and Twin Lakes
