Lexington girls golf falls short of 4A state championship

Dorman used experience and a strong front nine holes to win the Class 4A girls golf state championship in rainy conditions Tuesday at Lexington Country Club.

The Cavaliers finished with a two-day total of 641, five shots better than Lexington, for their third state championship and first since 2002.

“I got a team full of seniors and three of them have played with me since the seventh grade and another transferred in,” Dorman coach Lewis Terry said. “This was something we put on the mark for us to win. We had talked about this opportunity, and that was the goal for everyone on the team.”

Dorman’s Natalie Srinivasan, a Furman commit and one of four seniors on the squad, earned all-state and medalist honors by firing her second straight 70 to finish at 4-under 140. The Cavaliers trailed Lexington by two shots after the first day, but were 13 shots better on the front nine Tuesday to grab the lead.

The loss halted Lexington’s bid for its fourth straight championship and 11^th in last 12^th years. The Wildcats, who lost their top three players from last year’s team, were unable to overcome the slow start and finished second for the first time since 2011.

“We play and practice the front nine 90 percent of the time,” Lexington coach Brandon Smith said. “So it is mind-boggling that we didn’t play better on holes one through five. But we just got off to a bad start both days, and that ended up being the difference.”

Hailey Cleary, the lone senior, shot a 73 on the final day to lead Lexington with a 148, which tied her for third place individually, and Gracyn Burgess was eighth with a 152. Both earned all-state honors, which go to the top 10 finishers and ties.

“Our program is built for the long haul,” Smith said. “Dorman had four seniors and kind of built up for this one run, but hopefully we as a program we will make one for several years to come.”

White Knoll finished sixth in the tournament, and freshman Jensen Castle earned all-state honors for the third straight year after shooting 151, which placed her sixth.

Blythewood finished 12^th with a 727.

In Class 3A at Hilton Head, St. James won the championship by seven shots over Travelers Rest. TR’s Victoria Huskey was the medalist A.C. Flora finished 13th.