BY KYLE TROUTMAN ktroutman@cassville-democrat.com

The Cassville girls golf team hosted the Cassville Girls Golf Tournament on Thursday, taking third place as a team with three finishers in the top 25.

A total of 17 schools were represented, with 62 golfers hitting the links. Carthage won the event with a 360, and Joplin was second with a 396. The Lady Wildcats finished third with a 433, 9 strokes better than Reeds Spring and Mt. Vernon, who tied for fourth place.

“Overall that has been our best performance in a tournament this year so far,” said Clayton Bagby, Cassville golf coach. “Taylor Yarnall and Gwen Harmon both set personal bests for 18-hole scores in a tournament, and even though Julie Gregory and Anabele Mills weren’t particularly happy with their days, they have still shown improvement overall on the year and since last year.”

Yarnall shot a 102 to tie for 15th, and Harmon was a stroke behind at 103, taking 18th. Mills shot a 110 to finish tied for 23rd, and Gregory shot a 118, good for 32nd place. Paislee Bolinger rounded out the squad, finishing 57th with a 136.

“The girls have steadily been improving their ball striking ability as the season has progressed,” Bagby said. “We still need to continue to work on limiting shots around and on the green.”

Scores for the Lady Wildcats have been dropping in each of the three tournaments they have played in this season, and Bagby hopes to see that trend continue.

“At this point, our scores have improved overall as a team in the three 18-hole tournaments we have played, so if we can continue that over the next couple weeks, I think we can give ourselves a chance to earn some medals come conference and districts,” he said.

In the Big 8, Bagby said the competition is wide open.

“There isn’t one team you look at in the conference and say they are the favorite,” he said. “If we can show up that day ready to play, finishing towards the top should be very achievable, as well as getting a few girls to earn some medals with good days.”

As a team, Cassville outpaced Mt. Vernon, McDonald County, Monett, East Newton and Seneca at the Cassville Golf Club-hosted tournament.

A total of 13 schools, including Cassville, are in Class 2, District 3, and Bagby hopes as the improvements continue, postseason accolades will be in the cards.

“In the district, Strafford is very good,” Bagby said. “There are a few teams we haven’t seen yet, but we have competed with the others well. Like Conference, if we can limit shots in the short game, we should have some girls with a chance to earn a trip to State.”

The Big 8 Tournament will be played in Neosho, hosted by East Newton, on Oct. 6. The district tournament is set for Oct. 8 at the Bill & Payne Stewart Golf Course in Springfield.

The Class 2 Girls Golf State is Oct. 20-21 at Meadow Lake Acres Country Club in New Bloomfield.