Posted: Thu, 1 Jul 2010 09:00 AM - 128 Readers
By: Doug Smith
photography by Jay Janner
The Lake Travis girls and boys teams each accomplished their primary goal Monday in the first round of the Class 4A state championships, on a windswept Jimmy Clay Golf Course.
Both teams played their way into contention for the school's first state golf title, a championship that has barely eluded both teams in recent years.
The Lake Travis girls made the biggest statement Monday by taking the 18-hole lead with a team score of 30-over-par 318.
The Montgomery Purple team, winner of eight of the past 10 4A titles, was one stroke back at 319 and Highland Park was a distant third at 337.
Lake Travis junior Lexie Hall, playing in her third state championship, led the Cavs with a 4-over 76, good for a fifth-place tie in the individual race.
Lake Travis also counted a 78 by freshman Kristen Miller, an 81 by senior Chelsea Bretcher and an 83 by freshman Julia Beck. Senior Alison Becker shot 85.
The Lake Travis boys also are within reach of a state title, but they have a little more work ahead of them entering today's final round. Highland Park, winner of the boys 4A title in eight of the past 10 years, posted four scores in the 70s to take the team lead at 21-over 309.
Montgomery was second with a 315 total; the Cavs were third, seven shots back at 316; and Boerne Champion was fourth, at 319.
Lake Travis junior Tayler Termeer shot a 3-over-par 75, which was good for a tie for third individually. The Cavs also counted a 79 by freshman Joey Hearn, an 80 by junior Joe Beck III, and an 82 by freshman Klein Klotz. Junior Clayton Brady shot an 84.
Curtis Reed of Medina Valley took the boys individual lead with a 2-under-par 70. Scott Tredo of Boerne Champion was second with a 74, and Termeer was one of four players at 75.
Del Valle junior Elena Warren, who won the Texas girls junior championship last summer at Jimmy Clay, shot an even-par 72 to share the first-round lead with Taylor Newlin of Frisco Wakeland.
The Lake Travis girls are no strangers to the pressure of the state tournament. The Cavs finished fourth in the state championship in each of the past three years after taking third the two previous years.
"Our goal all year has been to get in this position. We have all worked so hard to get to this point, and we are so excited to be where we are," Hall said. "But (Tuesday) will be a long day, and we know we will have to stay focused and be at our best to do this."
The Lake Travis boys also have come close to taking home a state trophy, with a runner-up finish in 2008, a third in 2007 and a fourth in 2005.
Termeer played as a freshman on the 2008 runner-up .
"I hit it all over the place today, but just kind of scrambled around," he said . "Today we wanted to be sure we put ourselves into a position where we had a chance, and we did that. There are some good teams all right together, but we are a mature team, and we should be right there at the end tomorrow."
In the Class 2A tournament at Roy Kizer, the Salado girls took a big step toward their fourth state title since 2002. Salado, with a leading score of 80 by Rachel Van Hoozer, shot a team total of 350 to take the first-day lead.
Sydney Williams of Melissa held the individual lead after a 6-over 77.
Quitman and Brock shared the boys 2A lead at 336, while Jacob Daugherty of Wall led the individual race after a 75.
