Tesoro clinches at least a share of South Coast League title
Tesoro has a pretty mellow girls golf team, one which Coach Don Skaff said sometimes doesn’t really know if it won or lost. Tuesday match against a “league rival, ended with some hugs for the opponent.
“What can I say? We are low key and laid back,” Skaff said. “But that doesn’t mean we don’t want to go out there and win.”
Tesoro did just that at Laguna Woods Golf Club and clinched at least a share of the South Coast League title with its 202-246 victory against Laguna Hills.
Amanda Brown medaled for the No. 4 Titans (15-2, 6-0), shooting a 2-over-par 38.
Maddy Ziering-Smith led the Hawks (3-9, 0-7) with a 4-over-par 40.
Brown was just one of four Tesoro golfers to come in with a score of 41 or lower. Theodora York carded a 39 while her teammates Tara Finigan and Jeanelle Schweitzer posted a 40 and 41 respectively.
Finigan, Skaff said, has taken 11 shots off her nine-hole score from when she was playing on JV last season, so instead of finishing in the 50s, she routinely comes in right around 40. She only recently took up golf, Skaff said, when injuries forced her to give up gymnastics.
Tuesday’s match showed the strength of the Titans this season – depth. Skaff has been using a rotation of 13 girls this season, and his top four girls always expect to finish with a combined 160.
But even though the Titans ended Dana Hills’ 26-match winning streak earlier this season, Skaff really doesn’t know what to expect out of his team when the CIF-SS tournament season begins in less than two weeks.
“Only two of my girls play in tournaments, and we usually don’t get to play 18 holes (the length of CIF events),” Skaff said. “But if we get to play the course before, who knows?”
The Titans swept their season series with No. 5 Dana Hills, beating the Dolphins by two strokes through the two matches. The two teams tied in the series finale, even though Dolphins senior Avery French shot a 4-under-par 32 at Tijeras Creek Golf Club. The Titans were awarded the victory on the sixth player’s score.
“Beating Dana was big for us. They have a good team and have been ranked all season,” Skaff said. “But we have a deep team. We have a lot of girls in the program, and I have been using a lot of them to give them an opportunity.”
