VanArragon Holds off McCauley Sisters, Wins AAA Girls; Alex Is Team Champ

June 16, 2022 | 10 min.
By Michael R Fermoyle


COON RAPIDS -- The McCauley sisters were as good as advertised this week in the Class AAA portion of the girls state high school tournament. They were a combined 12 under par at Bunker Hills Golf Course. But Kathryn VanArragon was even better. 

This was a contest of three former state champions, and VanArragon came away with her second state title. Basically, the Blaine junior turned Wednesday's second round into a Trouble Shot & Short Game Clinic, as she put together a 2-under-par 70 and tied the tournament record total of 135 (9 under), which gave her a two-shot victory over Simley senior Bella McCauley, the 2019 champ.

McCauley's younger sister Reese, a junior -- the McCauley's are actually home-schooled, but they live in the Simley district; so they play for the Spartans -- shot 71 and finished third at 139. 

It should probably be remembered that Jody Rosenthal (later Anshutz), a future British Women's Open winner, won the third of her three Minnesota state high school Class AA titles in 1981 with a score of 147 at Majestic Oaks. That remained the large-school record for lowest score for 29 years. It was tied by Samantha Sommers in 2007, but it wasn't bettered until Alexandria's Maggie Leland shot 143 at Bunker in 2010.

Since then, the scores have come down precipitously as the level of girls golf in this state has improved dramatically. In 2014, New Prague's Kenzie Neisen had to shoot 135 to beat Wayzata's Sarah Burnham by a single stroke. Bella McCauley tied that record in 2019, and won by 10 strokes. Reese won the AAA crown a year ago. She shot 139 (70-69) and edged Roseville's Olivia Salonek by one shot. But never before have three girls broken 140.

For VanArragon, Wednesday's victory capped off a perfect high school season. She shot the low score in all 10 of Blaine's dual meets/matches, and won all six of the tournaments that she played in, including the only regular season tournament in which she played against the McCauleys. That was at Willingers in Northfield, and she won with a 66. Bella shot 67, and Reese 69.

The only tournament VanArragon played in and didn't win this spring was the U.S. Women's Open qualifier at Chaska Town Course, where the future University of St. Thomas recruit (she's committed for the fall of 2023) finished 10th with a 77-76--153. Gabby Lemieux, a professional from Caldwell, Idaho, was the medalist and got the only spot available with a 143 (71-72). Bella finished third with a 72-75--147 and was the second alternate. 

(Last year, Bella McCauley became the youngest Minnesota woman/girl to qualify for the Women's Open. She shot 80-70--150 at the Olympic Club in San Francisco and missed the cut by two. Because she was at the Open the week of sectional qualifiers, she didn't have a chance to defend the AAA high school title she had won two years ealier.)

Bella, who went into the state tournament as the No. 1 player in the MGA girls state high school rankings, is the University of Minnesota's prize recruit for 2022. She won a dozen tournaments this spring. Reese, No. 2 in the rankings, beat Bella twice, and they tied for first in Section 3AAA at Bunker Hills, where the McCauleys both ended up with 139's. Not counting the Women's Open qualifier, the only player they lost to was VanArragon, who was No. 3 in the rankings. 

Chanhassen senior Madi Hicks was No. 4, and that was where she wound up at Bunker Hills, tied for fourth at 145, thanks to a second-round 70. McKenna Mallow, a senior from Detroit Lakes, was the player who tied Hicks for fourth, after a second-round 75.

Then came Cora Larson of Alexandria. She followed a 75 with a 71 on Wednesday, which helped Alex secure the AAA girls team championship for the second year in a row. And for the second year in a row, Maple Grove finished second. The Cardinals, who finished 22 ahead of the Crimson last year, won by 16 this year, 628 to 644. 

Eastview claimed third place in the team competition with a two-day tab of 654. The Lightning improved on their first-round total of 331 by eight strokes with a 323 Wednesday. That was also how much Lauryn Finley improved her score. A friend of the McCauley's and a fellow Southview Country Club member, Finley came back from a first-round 78 with a 70 and finished seventh individually with the resulting total of 148.

Eden Prairie's Day 2 performance showed a significantly bigger improvement, from 344 to 315, led by Emma Davis, who followed a 79 with a 70. She tied Avery O'Donnell of Elk River for eighth at 149. O'Donnell shot 73.

Hannah Boraas gave team champ Alexandria a second player in the top 10 of the individual standings, with an aggregate of 150 (76-74). As for last year's runner-up, Olivia Salonek, the Roseville junior opened with a disastrous 81 but came back with a 70 in the second round, despite missing several times for birdie from close range, and finished 11th at 151. 

It was Reese McCauley who got off to the quickest start on Tuesday. She was 4 under after five holes (East Course), but that was where she ended the day. VanArragpm birdied two of the first four holes, and just kept making birdies -- eight in all -- as she set a tournament record with her 7-under 65. Bella started this tournament the way she started in 2019, with a 67. 

Reese got off to another fast start on Wednesday, with three birdies in the first four holes. But for the second day in a row, she gave one back at the par-5 sixth, and she didn't make another birdie until the 14th hole. Bella played the front nine in 1 under and was even with her sister at minus 6. Through eight holes, she was one behind VanArragon, but then Kathryn started to work magic with her wedges and putter. 

VanArragon had made a 20-footer for birdie at the par-4 second, and knocked a hybrid onto the green in two at the fourth, then two putted for birdie. But she gave back strokes at the fifth and sixth holes, a result of errant drives. It looked as if she might lose another shot to par when she hit her tee shot at the ninth deep into the trees. But she found an opening to the green, and hit her second shot to within 6 feet of the cup. She made the birdie putt. Then she pulled her drive at the the doglet left 10th hole (No. 1 West), but she got past the trees on the corner of the dogleg, hit that approach to 4 feet, and she made that putt, too, expanding her lead to three.

"I was struggling with my driver in the middle of the round," she conceded.

VanArragon's birdies at the ninth and 10th were followed by a series of par saves, beginning at No. 11, where she hit another drive left, and ended up in a hazzard. She took her drop, and hit a good third shot, then hit a gorgeous wedge shot from 50 yards and made a 6-footer for par. Bella McCauley hit her second shot on the 430-yard par 5 a few yards short of the green, and followed it with a chip to within 6 inches for a birdie. That cut VanArragon's lead over her to two.

"They called us off the course for the rain delay (about 40 minutes) after I made the drop but before I hit the next shot," VanArragon said. "So I had a lot of time to think about it. I'm not sure that was a good thing, but I played the hole really well from there."

After saving the par at 11, she two-putted for par from long distance at the 12th, where she made another putt in the 4-to-6 foot range.

"I've been working pretty hard on my short game and putting this spring," she noted. "A lot of it has been trying to match the speed and the break on my putts, because you have to do both things to putt well -- and it's not that easy."

Meanwhile, McCauley kept hitting putts that had a chance, but wouldn't go in. Over the first six holes of the back nine, she probably didn't make a grand total of more than 4 or 5 feet worth of putts.

"Except for the 11th hole," she said, "I kept having long putts for birdie. It was frustrating, because I was hitting great putts, but it's hard to make them from 25 or 30 feet, and that's where I was putting from. I just wasn't very sharp with my ball-striking, unfortunately."  

It appeared that VanArragon might end the suspense at the par-4 16th hole, where Bella, hitting her second shot as a train rolled by, pulled the shot into the left greenside bunker. Thirty seconds later, VanArragon's wedge shot trickled just past the pin and left her with a 6-footer for birdie. But McCauley saved par from the bunker with an 8-foot putt. VanArragon then missed her birdie putt and had to make a 2-footer coming back for her par.

"I didn't hit my birdie putt all that badly," she said, "but I hit it a little to hard, and I wound up with a par putt that was longer than what I wanted."

The clincher for VanArragon came at the 180-yard,  par-3 17th hole, where he knocked her tee shot about 7 or 8 yards over the green. She had to land her chip/pitch in some some gnarly rough and let it trickle onto the green. She did it perfectly. When she made the 2-footer for par and then hit the center of the fairway with her 250-yard drive at the 18th, the game was over.     

Her performance on Wednesday looked a lot like what Scottie Scheffler did in the final round of the Masters, when he put on what looked like a short game master class to win one of the biggest tournaments of the year.

"Yeah," VanArragon said, noting the similarities between her round and his. "But I didn't actually think of him until the 18th hole. After all the good shots I'd hit, I didn't want to do what he did on the last green (with his victory already secured, Scheffler four-putted the 18th green at Augusta), and make it any closer than it was." 

Her 135 total this year was eight shots better than her winning total from four years ago -- when she was a seventh-grader. 

"Bella and Reese are both friends of mine, VanArragon said. "We've been playing in the same tournaments for a long time. They've made me a better player, and I'm sure they're better because they've been competing against me."


THE 2022 MINNESOTA STATE GIRLS’ CLASS AAA CHAMPIONSHIP
BUNKER HILLS GOLF COURSE

COON RAPIDS, MINN.
5,810 YARDS, PAR 72

FINAL TEAM RESULTS

1. Alexandria Area -- 318-310--628
2. Maple Grove -- 327-317--644
3. Eastview -- 331-323--654
4. Eden Prairie -- 344-315--659
5. Edina -- 341-320--661
6. Elk River -- 338-339--677
7. Lakeville South -- 353-356--709
8. Stillwater Area -- 356-367--723

FINAL INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

1. Kathryn VanArragon, Blaine -- 65-70--135
2. Bella McCauley, Simley -- 67-70--137
3. Reese McCauley, Simley -- 68-71--139
T4. Madi Hicks, Chanhassen -- 75-70--145
T4. McKenna Mallow, Detroit Lakes--70-
6. Cora Larson, Alexandria -- 75-71--146
7. Lauryn Finley, Eastview -- 78-70--148
T8. Emma Davies, Eden Prairie --79-70--149
T8. Avery O'Donnell, Elk River--76-73--149
10. Hannah Boraas, Alexandria--76-74--150
11. Olivia Salonek, Roseville -- 81-70--151
12. Clara Halverson, Benilde-St. Margaret's -- 75-78--153
T13. Nicole Reineke, Chaska -- 77-77--154
T13. Selena Wu, Minnetonka -- 78-76--154
T13. Ellie Breuer, St. Michael-Albertville 76-78--154
T13. Saachi Deshmukh, Wayzata -- 79-75--154
17. Emerson Garlie, Northfield -- 79-77--156
18. Kelsi Mauzy, Lakeville South -- 78-79--157
19. Katie Burke, Edina -- 80-78--158
T20. Amelia Morton, Maple Grove -- 84-75--159
T20. McKenna Hogan, Maple Grove -- 82-77--159

For complete tournament results: https://www.mshsl.org/2022-state-golf-results

Michael R Fermoyle

Mike Fermoyle’s amateur golf career features state titles in five different decades, beginning with the State Public Links (1969), three State Amateurs (1970, 1973 and 1980), and four State Four-Ball championships (1972, 1985, 1993 and 2001). Fermoyle was medalist at the Pine to Palm in 1971, won the Resorters in 1972, made the cut at the State Amateur 18 consecutive years (1969 to 1986), the last being 2000, and amassed 13 top-ten finishes. Fermoyle also made it to the semi-final matches at the MGA’s annual match play championship, the Players’, in 1982 and 1987.

Fermoyle enjoyed a career as a sportswriter at the St. Paul Pioneer Press Dispatch before retiring in 2006. Two years later he began a second career covering the golf beat exclusively for the MGA and its website, mngolf.org, where he ranks individual prep golfers and teams, provides coverage on local amateur and professional tournaments and keeps tabs on how Minnesotans are faring on the various professional tours.

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