SBCC saved its best for last on Monday as four players posted season lows and the Vaqueros took fourth in the CCCAA State Women's Golf Championships at Morro Bay Golf Course.
Alexa Bleth led the Vaqueros with a personal-best of 2-over 74 on the 5,378-yard course. She shot five strokes better than her season low of 79 from the day before. Bleth finished sixth at 153 and earned All-State honors.
"Alexa was awesome," said coach Chuck Melendez. "She hit some beautiful shots to get into birdie situations. She really enjoys playing the game and working on her game. She could have gone even lower today but this is a pretty tough putting course."
Canyons captured its third state title, shooting 309 and 306 for a 36-hole total of 615. The Cougars beat runner-up Desert (633) by 18 strokes. Sierra was third at 654, one stroke better than the Vaqueros, who shot a season-low 316.
Santa Barbara has finished first, second, third and fourth in the State Tournament the last four years.
"I was very happy with how we played but it was bittersweet, losing by one stroke to our nemesis, Sierra," said SBCC coach Chuck Melendez, whose team went 62-19 for the season.
Eunsoo Jeon of Fullerton won the state title with rounds of 69 and 73 for a 2-under 142. Haruka Koda of Canyons was one stroke back at 143 and Tammy Lim of Fresno shot 70 and took third at 146.
Vaquero sophomore Stephanie Farouze was eight shots better (87-79--166) and tied for 21st. Lauren Calvin (85-83--168) was two shots behind in 27th and Corina Garcia (89-80--169) improved her score by nine strokes.
The Vaqueros' six players were a combined 35 strokes lower than their first round. Bleth, whose 74 was the fifth-best score of the day, Garcia (80), Kayla Karst (83) and Juliet Parsons (85) all shot their best rounds of the year.
"Today was the best we've played, from No. 1 to 6," added Melendez. "Overall, I'm really happy with the season. It was great to see everyone play their best on the last day of the year."
CCCAA State Championships
At par-72 Morro Bay GC
Final 36-hole scores
Team -- 1, Canyons 309-306--615. 2, Desert 325-308--633. 3, Sierra 330-324--654. 4, SBCC 339-316--655. 5, Reedley 333-331--664. 6, Saddleback 331-339--670. 7, Modesto 332-344--676. 8, Fresno City 362-347--709.
Medalist (par 72, top 6 are All-State) -- 1, Eunsoo Jeon, Fullerton, 69-73--142. 2, Haruka Koda, Canyons, 72-71--143. 3, Tammy Lim, Fresno City, 76-70--146. 4, Katie Stribling, Irvine Valley, 74-74--146. 5, Zoe Walker, Desert, 76-73--149. 6, Alexa Bleth, SBCC, 79-74--153.
SBCC scores -- 6, Bleth 79-74--153. 21 (tie), Stephanie Farouze 87-79--166. 27 (tie), Lauren Calvin 85-83--168. 30 (tie), Corina Garcia 89-80--169. 37 (tie), Juliet Parsons 88-85--173. 41, Kayla Karst 92-83--175.
SBCC overall record -- 62-19.
