After opening the first round of the Class 6A tournament with an even-par team score and a 31-shot lead, the Lambert girls were enjoying a post-meal treat from the local Dairy Queen when they told coach Shane Fortenberry they wanted to return to the golf course and hit balls.
While his girls were on the range, a parent from an opposing team wandered by and struck up a conversation with the coach.
“He said, ‘Wait, aren’t you guys winning by 31 shots?’” Fortenberry said. “Then he paused and said, “Oh, maybe that’s why you’re winning by 31 shots.”
With their games dialed, the Longhorns won their sixth straight state championship and 11th overall on Tuesday at Kinderlou Forest in Valdosta. The Longhorns shot a 216-205 to finish 11-under – the lowest score during their championship run -- and won the Class 6A title by 69 shots over runner-up Lowndes.
They also earned a spot in the PGA’s National High School Golf Invitational at Pinehurst, an event the team has won twice.
Lambert had three of the top four finishers, led by medalist Grace Lee, who shot 69-66 to finish 9-under 135, and beat UCLA-bound senior Athena Yoo, who was runner-up after rounds of 72-66. App State signee Zoe Duval shot 75-73 and finished fourth at 4-over 148. McKinlee Proctor finished 12th and freshman Fiona Kim finished 20th.
Lee and Duval completed their career as four-time state champions.
It was one of 16 golf championship decided around the state.
Class 6A boys at Kinderlou Forest Golf Club, Valdosta: Cherokee won its first state championship by defeating Carrollton on the second playoff hole. The two teams had tied at 9-over 585.
Carrollton was led by Christopher Watts, who tied for sixth at 1-over 145. MacKinnley Yarbrough and Edward Fleck tied for ninth at 3-over 147 and Davis Haas was 16th at 149.
Cherokee’s top finisher was Thaxton Cheyne, who tied for sixth at 145. Blake Spivey and Michael King tied for 13th at 4-over 148 and A.J. Burns was 26th at 153.
The medalist was Ledger Conley of Richmond Hill, who shot rounds of 69-70 to finish at 5-under 139. Kaiden Drum of Harrison and Sahish Reddy of Lambert tied for second at 142 and Luke Friend of North Paulding was fourth at 143.
Class 5A boys at Jekyll Island Golf Resort – Pine Lakes: Creekview won its first state championship and ended Milton’s streak of consecutive titles at four. The Grizzlies shot 8-under 568 to win by six shots over the defending champion Eagles. Creekview was led by Griffin Latimer, who finished 7-under 137. Creekview’s Matt Calhoun was eighth at even par, and Ryan Gallagher and Tanner Latimer tied for 10th at 1-over 145. William Long of Milton was medalist after shooting 9-under 135 (66-69).
Class 5A girls at Sea Island Golf Club – Retreat Course, St. Simons Island: Johns Creek used its superior depth to win its second straight state championship. The Gladiators shot 38-over 470 and defeated McIntosh by 13 shots. Aerin Kim was the top scorer for Johns Creek, placing third at 9-over 153. The Gladiators also counted Sofia Milano (eighth), Jocelyn Zeng (11th), Lucy Ferrell (14th) and Kendall Black (15th). The medalist was Aanya Vantipalli of Milton, who tied with Coffee’s Hannah Powell at 148 and prevailed in a playoff.
Class 4A boys at Governors Towne Club, Acworth: Cartersville shot 4-under 572 and scored a three-shot win over North Oconee, the defending state champion and winner of three of the last four titles. Cartersville’s top scores came from Bodie Brumlow, sixth at 3-under 141, Andrew Lutjens and Noah Pogue, who tied for 120th at even-par 144, Carsen Stanfield, who was 12th at 145, and Reid Henson, who was 15th at 146. North Oconee was led by Zach Wiley, who finished eighth at 2-under 142. The medalist was sophomore Bear Dollander of Benedictine, who shot 66-68 for a 10-under 134, which was four shots better than Blake Goodroe of Madison County (66-72) and Cole Stockard of Dalton (69-69).
Class 4A girls at Bentwater Golf Club, Acworth: North Oconee won its fourth straight championship, shooting 60-over 492, to overtake first-round leader St. Pius and win by three strokes. North Oconee’s top performers were Hailey Moffett and Aubree Hill, who tied for seventh at 163, and Kyler Hammond, who was 10th at 167. St. Pius was led by medalist Elizabeth Sullivan, who shot 74-77 to finish 7-over 151, and Annabella Sheridan, who was fifth at 161. Ashlyn Taylor of Marist shot 9-over 153 to finish second.
Class 1-3A Private boys at Twin City Country Club, Tennille: Darlington prevailed in a playoff to end Mount Paran’s streak of three straight championships. It was the most competitive tournament of the day. Darlington and Mount Paran Christian tied at 26-over 602, followed by Aquinas (603), Holy Innocents’ (606), Walker (610) and Christian Heritage (611) and Prince Avenue Christian (614).
Darlington was led by Viet Nguyen, who shot 2-over 146 to finish fourth, and Grayson Clark, who shot 7-over and placed 15th. The medalist was Evan Rogers of Hebron Christian, who shot 70-66 to finish at 8-under 136. Brody McQueen of Mount Paran and Logan Skaggs of Holy Innocents tied for second at 145.
Class 1-3A Private girls at Twin City Country Club, Tennille: Molly Spector shot 4-under 140 to finish second and lead Holy Innocents’ to its first championship since 2021. Brooke Benedict was 12th and the Bears shot an 11-over 299. Wesleyan was runner-up at 301 and Prince Avenue Christian was third 307. Claire Bradford of Prince Avenue was medalist after rounds of 68-70-138.
Class 3A boys at Highland Country Club, LaGrange: Medalist Braceton Beasley, a freshman, shot 76-69 to finish 1-over 145 and help West Laurens win its first state championship. The Raiders shot a 629, seven shots better than North Hall and nine ahead of LaGrange. North Hall was led by Tyler Matson, who finished second at 1-over 145.
Class 3A girls at Highland Country Club, LaGrange: Jefferson had three girls finish inside the top 10 and won its first state championship. Rylee Brown (fifth, 168), Anna Kate Patton (seventh, 172) and Addison Taylor (eighth, 176) led the Dragons, who shot 340 as a team and beat North Hall by seven shots. Alisa Pressley of Cherokee Bluff was medalist at 7-over 151, four strokes better than freshman Ariel Collins of Luella.
Class 2A boys at Bull Creek Golf Course – East Course, Columbus: Columbus, led by medalist Brooks Urquhart, shot 11-over 587 to win its 14th state championship and first since 2018. Urquhart, a sophomore, had rounds of 64-73 to shoot 7-under. Columbus also had Jay Patel, who was third at 3-over 147, Monty Thakur, who was fifth at 7-over 154, and Boone Bickerstaff, who was ninth at 11-over 155. Ethan Arnold of Pierce County was second overall at 1-under 143.
Class 2A girls at Maple Ridge Golf Club, Columbus: Led by medalist MacKenzie Connell, Pierce County made it four in a row with a 35-shot victory over Hart County. Connell shot 75-73 to finish at 8-over 152 and beat Maya Lilja-Vazquez of Savannah Arts Academy by 12 strokes. Pierce County’s Mollie Kate Dixon was third (170), Brook Dixon was eighth (181) and Belle Sinclair was ninth (182).
Class A Division 1 boys at Arrowhead Pointe Golf Club, Elberton: Elbert County won its first state championship since 1966, shooting 649 to prevail by three shots over Bremen and five over Banks County. Kale Kurtz (10th, 160) and Caleb Burton (11th, 161) led Elbert County. The medalist was Colten Lewis of Swainsboro, who shot 71-72 1-under 143, two shots better than Will Bowen of Commerce.
Class A Division I girls at Arrowhead Pointe Golf Club, Elberton: Gordon Lee won its first state championship since 2008, shooting 56-over 344 to beat runner-up Elbert County by 13. Gordon Lee’s top finishers were Charlsie McElhaney, who finished fifth, and Haley Talley, who was seventh. The medalist was Georgia Womack of Model, who shot 82-77-159 and beat Skylar Fountain of Vidalia by five shots.
Class A Division 2 boys at Bartram Trail Golf Club, Evans: Lake Oconee Academy won its third championship in four seasons, blitzing the field by 72 shots. The Titans shot a 6-under 570, led by Poli Medrano, who was second at 139, Eli Tillery, who was third at 141, Tucker Littleton, who was fifth at 144, and Carson Johnston, who was seventh at 146. The medalist was Luke Hylton of Brooks County, who shot 64-71-135 to win by four shots.
Class A Division 2 girls at Bartram Trail Golf Club, Evans: Lake Oconee ran away from the field to win its seventh straight championship. The Titans shot 11-over 299 and beat Metter by 56 shots. Lake Oconee had the top four individuals in the tournament: medalist Lili Nelson (1-over 143), freshman runner-up Tianna Chiplock (12-over 156), third-place Lily Dominy (158) and fourth-place Kensley Windham (165).
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