Platte County honored four seniors and put each into the lineup for the final home dual of the season Thursday at Shiloh Springs Golf Course.
Platte County junior Grace Handke prepares to a hit a tee shot during the Highway 92 Showdown on Wednesday at Paradise Pointe Golf Complex’s The Posse Course in Smithville.
Staley held on for a two-stroke win with a 208 team total thanks to posting the second, third and fourth lowest individual scores on the nine-hole setup. However, the Pirates’ 210 included a medalist performance from all-state No. 1 Ella Green plus contributions from fellow seniors Macie Garland (57) and Izzie Grell (61), while Danika Stephenson might have played her final round with a 63.
Green, Garland and Grell have been regular members of Platte County’s lineup this season, while Stephenson has made contributions in certain circumstances.
Adding in Handke and junior Emma Mizell plus freshman Finnley Dougan, Platte County coach Trevor Short has attempted to optimize the lineup behind Green for the final three tournaments of the year. The Pirates travel to Hoot’s Hollow Golf Course in Pleasant Hill on Monday for the Suburban Conference White Division Championships before the postseason begins a week later in the Class 3 District 4 tournament at Eagles’ Landing Golf Course in Belton.
Platte County looks to recapture the White Division title. The Pirates won seven straight Suburban Conference titles from 2016-2022 — six in the Blue Division and then the White Division crown in 2022 before finishing second last season to Grain Valley.
Platte County senior Macie Garland hits a put during the Highway 92 Showdown on Wednesday at Paradise Pointe Golf Complex’s The Posee Course in Smithville.
However, the competition increases this year.
The White Division expanded to include Fort Osage, Ruskin and Truman. Platte County claimed four first-team all-conference honors last year with Green placing second to go with a conference championship as a sophomore and fourth-place finish as a freshman.
Handke shot a career-best 103 in the White Division tournament last year to place eighth, while Garland finished 16th and just missed honorable mention honors.
Green and Handke have the only postseason experience for Platte County, which finished a distant third in Class 3 District 4 last season with those two in the lineup. The district team champion and runnerup automatically send their top four players to the Class 3 MSHSAA Golf Championships, while the next 13 individual players not from those teams, including ties, also advance.
If a state-qualifying team’s fifth score falls in the top 13 individuals or within 10 strokes of the individual cut line, that player advances and does not count toward the top 13 individuals.
Green’s strong season puts her in obvious conversation to compete for an individual district title and almost a certainty to become the second four-time state qualifier in program history (Lily Ricketts, 2020-2023). After placing fourth in Class 3 District 4 as a sophomore and ninth as a freshman, she came in a somewhat disappointing four-way tie for third last fall before going on to become the second all-state golfer in program history with the two-lowest rounds ever shot for the Pirates in any 18-hole competition.
Platte County senior Ella Green hits a drive during the Highway 92 Showdown on Wednesday at Paradise Pointe Golf Complex’s The Posee Course in Smithville.
Handke posted the No. 4 score for Platte County at districts and placed 30th with a 118 in postseason debut. The Pirates have not sent a full team to state since 2021 with Green a part of that lineup.
Highway 92 Showdown
Platte County finished third with Green second as an individual in the quad also featuring Smithville, Kearney and Excelsior Springs on Wednesday at Paradise Pointe Golf Complex’s The Posse Course.
On a par 36 setup, Smithville ran away with the team title 178, while Kearney came in second with a 213 — edging Platte County by just three strokes. Green shot a 44, which featured a quadruple bogey at No. 1. She came back late, closing with back-to-back birdies but couldn’t catch Smithville’s Cali Hatcher (40).
Handke posted a 52 for Platte County with the first birdie of her career — a three on the par 4 seventh — while Garland (59) and Grell (61) rounded out the 216 team score.
“Not quite the results that we were hoping for, but again, we have had some very positive things happening around the course even though our scores do not show it,” Platte County coach Trevor Short said.
Liberty North Invitational
Green’s run of tournament victories ended at three when she finished tied for second Monday at Winterstone Golf Course in Independence. She shot a 6-over 78 and came in just one shot back of Park Hill’s Makenna Kinchloe.
Platte County finished 12th out of 15 varsity teams with a 426 in the final 18-hole tuneup before conference. The Pirates other three scores came from Handke (111), Grell (116) and Dougan (121), playing in her second varsity event.
“We knew going into the event that it was going to be a tough field on a tough course,” Short said. “Our main focus was putting together multiple positive shot sequences. We were successful at accomplishing that goal and the next step is to continue to add more positive shots into those sequences.”
