By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – If eyes are the mirrors to the soul, Bedford North Lawrence’s collective essence was dark and almost lifeless at the end of the day. Emotions are worn on faces, and the Stars were dragging around their winter coats, heavy and a little depressing.
Smile. After all, they’re now ranked 14th (a jump of four spots) in the latest state poll. Somebody out there likes them. But as most golfers can relate, they are prisoners of the moment, mood directly proportional to scorecard. And there will be better days ahead.
Be not dismayed, BNL won. The Stars rolled to an unchallenged conquest of Edgewood on the front nine at Otis Park on a glorious Monday afternoon. The Mustangs weren’t the opponent, the course was, and it won this round as BNL’s scores reflected, or caused, a letdown.
Paced by Kinleigh Root’s 4-over 41, the Stars fired a team total of 171. BNL coach Kori Johnston expected a handful of scores in the 30s, but the heat-hardened layout refused to yield those.
“We’re very capable of that,” Johnston said. “We’re still battling some swings, getting that confidence back. Hopefully we’ll get that squared away.
“They’re just a solid group. We haven’t shown what we can really do yet. Hopefully we’re saving that for later in the season. We‘ve got to see little glimmers of it.”
There were bright moments. Root was even-par after her first six holes, highlighted by a birdie on the infamous 8th hole (a wedge from 90 yards to three feet). She stumbled on the last three holes (holes 1-3) when her putter betrayed her.
“My putting was great the first six holes,” Root said. “I was throwing darts. Then I started bogeying, three-putting everything. I’m trying to get my mental game straight, and bounce back from bad shots, but it kept getting worse.“
The other sparkles were generated by Sammie Nusbaum, who posted two birdies (holes 6 and 7) from the fifth spot in the lineup and carded a counting 44. Kenley Craig birdied the ninth during her round of 43, and Ellie Horton added a 43.
“Sammie is improving every day,” Johnston said. “Her swing from the start of the season to now is night and day. It’s just getting that confidence.”
BNL will visit Seymour on Tuesday.
BNL 171, BNL B 215, Edgewood 232
BNL – Chloe McFaddin 44, Kinleigh Root 41, Kenley Craig 43, Ellie Horton 43, Sammie Nusbaum 44
BNL B – Jasmine Nguyen 57, Jaylee Huffman 53, Kadynn Canada 48, Jayla Brewer 57, Madi Crane 61
Edgewood – Ashton Sessions 58, Boston Chambers 56, Addie Hash 57, Megan Hancock 61, Maddie Hancock 69
