Aberdeen Central's Olivia Braun grabs lead in race for Class AA girls golf championship

YANKTON — Aberdeen Central and Watertown are very much a part of a three-way battle for the state Class AA high school girls golf tournament .

Play opened Monday with 18 holes at the Hillcrest Golf and Country Club and concluded with defending champion Mitchell (331) holding a one-shot lead of Aberdeen Central (332) and a two-shot advantage over Watertown (333). Fourth-place O'Gorman is 12 shots behind Watertown.

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That means things are expected to get real interesting on Tuesday.

"We're two shots back going into Day 2 so we're in a good spot," Watertown head coach Corey Neale said. "I've said to the team throughout the year that the opportunity to win the state championship is right there for them to take and they put themselves right there to do it."

Mitchell won its first state golf title last spring. Aberdeen Central, under coach Kim Zimmerman, has never won a state title. Watertown's last state titles came in Class A (under the old two-class system) in 1978 and 1978.

Last fall, Watertown's boys captured their first state title since 1971 and the girls wouldn't mind making it a sweep of AA titles for Arrow golfers in 2023-24.

"The girls had a really good day. This is a really difficult golf course with thick rough, challenging holes and small greens," Neale said. "The way they continued to grind was great to see. They stayed positive even after a rough hole and competed until the last putt was holed."

The Arrows had five of their six golfers tied for 19th or better after the opening day. Freshman Gabi Olson led the way. She is tied for fifth after opening with an 8-over 80. Seniors Avery Palmquist and Shelby Pearson each shots 83s to tie for ninth. Senior Aspen Reynolds, tied for 14th (87) and junior Natalie Pearson, tied for 22nd (89). Freshman Carighan Klatt opened with a 101.

Aberdeen Central's girls have a shot at a sweep of titles since sophomore Olivia Braun opened with an even-par 72 to grab a three-shot lead in the individual race over defending runner-up Allison Meyerink of Mitchell. Maddie Childs of Mitchell is third at 78 along with Erin Hurd of O'Gorman.

Other Aberdeen Central golfers include Emma Dohrer, eighth (82); Kyley Wirebaugh and Chloe Vikander, tied for 19th (89); and Morgan Jones, tied for 34th (95).

State Golf Preview: Watertown and Aberdeen Central's teams, Clark-Willow Lake's Roehrich among title hopefuls

Team Scores — Mitchell 331, Aberdeen Central 332, Watertown 333, O'Gorman 345, Sioux Falls Lincoln 362, Rapid City Stevens 373, Spearfish 377, Yankton 379, Sioux Falls Jefferson 396, Brandon Valley 302, Brookings 405 and Pierre and Harrisburg each 420.

Other Top 10 Golfers — 5. (Tie) Ella Homstad, Yankton, and Alison Kennedy, Spearfish, 80; 9. (Tie) Lilly Heisinger, Sturgis, 83; 12. Delilah Fuls, Brookings, 84; 13. Lauren Knapp, Rapid City Stevens, 86; 14. (Tie) Quinn Dannenbring, Mitchell and Paydynm Peterson and Geneva Fredrickson, O'Gorman, 87; 18. Abbigail Westra, Sioux Falls Lincoln, 88; 22. (Tie) Sabrina Krajewski, Yankton; Kinsley Freese and Lillian Kiesow, Sioux Falls Lincoln; and Megan Christoffels, Sioux Falls Washington, 90.

Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: rmerriam@thepublicopinion.com

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Aberdeen Central's Olivia Braun grabs lead in race for Class AA girls golf championship