WEST END, NC – Emily Matthews was the only player under par, collecting the first Individual State Championship for a player from Eastern Alamance in the program’s history. She was matched by another group celebrating a first, the Freedom Patriots, who won the school’s first Team State Championship at the 3A Women’s Golf State Championship at Beacon Ridge Golf & Country Club.
Matthews was spectacular for her 18 holes, carding a pair of eagles in her round. She eagled the par 4 3rd, holing out in two on the 356-yard hole. Then on the 462-yard par 5 16th, she got home in three, matching the eagle from the front nine.
She struggled a bit on the par 3’s, playing each of the four on the course in 1-over. However, her bogey on each hole was significantly better than the field average on each of the holes. The performance was a dominant one, besting the field by eight shots.
Freedom golfers had a wonderful afternoon as well, bringing home the State Championship hardware for the first time. The Patriots finished a comfortable 18 shots clear of second-place Cox Mill. Albany Bock and Anna Czarkowski led the way for the Patriot golfers, both firing a 12-over 84 and finishing in a four-way tie for third. Christina Fisher rounded out the scoring for Freedom, coming in at 23-over 95 and in a tie for 24th.
The NCHSAA is committed to promoting good sportsmanship and has partnered with NC Farm Bureau to recognize one individual from each of the top two teams with the 2021 Women’s Golf Sportsmanship Awards for each classification. The 2021 3A Women’s Golf Sportsmanship Award winners were Christina Fisher from Freedom and Riya Modak from Cox Mill.
