Polson girls take third place at state
From left are Tali Arlint, Ashley Archer, Amy Williamson, Cali Hislop, Julia DiGiallonardo. Photo courtesy of Williamson family
By Ethan Smith - Leader Staff
If you think they did well this year, wait 'til you see them next year.
The Polson Lady Pirates returned home from Anaconda last week after taking third in the state golf tournament, after competing against teams with a lot more experience.
The girls had a solid start last Wednesday, with Julia DiGiallonardo and Tali Arlint finishing in fifth and sixth place, respectively, after the first day of play, out of more than 80 golfers from almost 20 teams.
DiGiallonardo's 88 and Arlint's 89 helped the team start off in third place, behind Glendive and Whitefish, who eventually battled it out for second and first place on Thursday.
Ashley Archer turned in a 96, just missing the Top 15 Wednesday, followed by good performances by Amy Williamson and Cali Hislop. At the state tourney, five girls compete and the top four scores count each day.
On Thursday, DiGiallonardo turned in a 90 to finish seventh overall in the state, but her teammates really turned it up a notch, too, to solidify their third place finish.
Williamson took 12 strokes off Wednesday's performance, while Hislop took an amazing 21 strokes off to card a 95 Thursday. Archer, who had the most consistent play over the two days, turned in a 97, and Arlint turned in a 95 for a final team score of 763.
Whitefish finished in first with a 717, followed by Glendive at 729.
On the boys side, the Pirates finished in the middle of the pack, taking sixth out of 12 teams, led by great performances by Tyler Engebretson and Sean Medland.
The two started strong and finished strong, carding 83s on Wednesday to finish tied for 12th individually, but outdid themselves Thursday. Engebretson finished with a fantastic 78, for a two-day total of 161 - just missing the Top 10 by two strokes - while Medland shot a 79 on Thursday, finishing with a 162.
Overall, the team was pretty consistent, with Aaron Clairmont turning in a 93 and 89; Joe Andrews had a 94 and 96; and Ed Truman shot a 95 and a 90 to finish up.
Polson finished with a team score of 689, while Hamilton blew the competition away, taking first with a 619, followed by Billings Central at 644.
The good news for both teams is that they have a host of talent coming back next year.