Article by CODY PALADINO
Photos by PETER J. DEFAZIO – http://www.peterdefazio.com
The 2010 Northern Junior Girls Championship included some very fine play by several competitors. First round leader Eliza Breed of Greenwich, CT posted a fantastic round of one under par 71 on day one, and carried a commanding five stroke lead into the final round. Joining Breed in the final pairing on day two were Katie Barrand of Beverly, MA, who posted a four over par round of 76 on day one, and Elizabeth DiVincentis of Durham, CT, whose six over par round of 78 left her in third place heading into the final round.
Breed played solidly over the opening nine holes, recording four bogeys and one birdie, and made the turn at two over par for the championship. Her playing partners playing steady golf as well, but failed to make up any ground on Breed. Barrand posted four over par for the first nine holes, as did DiVincentis, and heading into the back nine Breed still held a sizeable lead of six shots over Barrand.
Playing in the group just ahead of the final pairing, Kelly Whaley of Farmington, CT was slowly working her way up the leaderboard. After a tough start which left her six over par for the final round through just five holes, she recovered with birdies at the par 5 6th and short par 4 8th. She made the turn to the back nine at twelve over par for the championship, and in a tie for third place with DiVincentis. Joining Whaley in her pairing were Alexandria Lee of Windsor, CT and Jessica Madsen of Slingerlands, NY. Both Lee and Madsen began the final round in a tie for fifth place at nine over par, however a fine round of 78 on the final day gave Lee a solo fifth place showing, while Madsen finished alone in sixth place after a final round 80.
Entering the final nine holes of the championship, Breed picked up another shot on the field with a birdie on the par 5 10th, but would give back a total of five shots of the next five holes, dropping to six over par for the championship entering the par 3 16th. Playing alongside Breed, Barrand and DiVincentis continued to play steadily, yet failed to cut into Breed's lead. Barrand would go on to finish in fourth place at thirteen over par for the championship, while DiVincentis finished one stroke better and alone in third place.
In the group ahead of Breed, Kelly Whaley continued her fine play and recorded four more birdies over the final nine holes. She made two bogeys on the back nine as well, yet her final round 74 was the low round of the day by four shots. Breed carded a birdie on the par 4 17th to extend her lead to five shots over Whaley, and despite a disappointing bogey at the closing hole, Breed walked off the final green with a four shot victory and a Northern Junior title.
In the end, Breed coasted to victory mostly due to her spectacular round of 71 on day one, which was the low round of the championship by three shots. She posted a final round 79 and finished the week at six over par total, good enough for a four shot victory over Kelly Whaley. Elizabeth DiVincentis, Katie Barrand, and Alexandria Lee rounded out the top five. The biggest improvement from round one to round two belonged to Alyssa Scheyd of Kensington, CT. Scheyd, who plays out of Timberlin Golf Club, followed up her opening round 91 with a solid six over par 78 on day two.
Thanks to all competitors, and a special thank you to all volunteers and sponsors who helped to make this year's Northern Junior the most successful event to date. We look forward to seeing everyone at Ellington Ridge in 2011, and congratulations to Eliza Breed, the 2010 Stan Trojanowski Northern Junior champion.