Independence senior Sophia Trombetta opened the 2017 season with two straight tournament wins and on Tuesday she did something no other Chagrin Valley Conference player has done before.
Trombetta shot a 64 to win the CVC Preseason Tournament at St. Denis Golf Course.
“I felt extremely loose today,” Trombetta said. “I played with three girls who were so much fun and were so encouraging, and that definitely contributed to the way I played. (Hawken’s) Ryan Covitt and I have played together for the past two years and every time we do we have the best time. It definitely seems to help me out on the course.”
The red tees at St. Denis play out to 5,800 yards but a couple of the par 4s were adjusted, shortening the course just a bit.
“The course was short for me, but I still had to go out there and make the shots,” Trombetta said. “I have been struggling off the tee, but today I felt like I couldn’t miss. Every part of my game was on and it was just the best feeling. I have been lacking confidence lately, but this round is definitely a huge booster. We have a big tournament tomorrow and I’m hoping I can carry this momentum over to Pine Hills and help my team out there.”
With Trombetta setting new personal and league records, and possibly a course record, the Blue Devils cruised to the team title with a tournament low 330 strokes.
“We golfed really well,” said Independence coach Karl Schuld. “Whenever you come to a league tournament you want to do your best. We played really well today. We were one shot off our all-time low from the state tournament last year.”
Lyndsay Blum finished with an 80 for the Blue Devils.
“She’s been ‘Steady Eddy,’” Schuld said of Blum. “She came back with an 80 and has been right around that mark every match. She’s been cutting out the double bogeys and when you do that you’re going to score.”
Madeline Mindzora also was at her best as she shot a career-low 86 and Maddie Harper scored with a 100.
“Madeline Mindzora shot a 39 on the back and really played very good golf,” Schuld said. “Maddie Harper’s putting was a little off today, so she easily could have dropped a couple of shots there.”
Allie Ksiazka lowered her career-best score to 106 and Emma McGreal shot 111 in her first varsity action.
“There are so many stories, I almost feel like I’m cheating someone because everybody golfed well today,” Schuld said. “When we’re on, we’re on. Even Emma McGreal, who only golfed in one JV match last year and then worked her butt off came out and tried out for varsity and here she is the No. 6 golfer on a team that is very competitive.”
The Blue Devils, who have won three straight tournaments, return to action on Wednesday at the Padua Bruin Invitational at Pine Hills Golf Club.
“We’re going to see some really good competition,” Schuld said. “We’ll find out where we stand tomorrow with some of the really good Division I teams.”
