When Platte County senior Bailey Silcott sunk her final putt on hole 18 at the Columbia Country Club in the Class 3 State Championship on Oct. 18, she made program history.
In the entire existence of the Platte County girls’ golf team, no player has ever finished in the top-15 to earn all-state honors until Silcott did it in her final match as a Lady Pirate. Silcott barely made the cut, finishing in 15th place with 175 strokes.
“Bailey (Silcott) was bound and determined to beat her mother’s state score, which she did, but the icing on the cake is a top-15 finish, a state medal and All-State honors,” Platte County head golf coach Trevor Short said. “Bailey has worked very hard at her craft for awhile; she’s put in a lot of extra hours with her grandpa Brian Silcott, who is a PGA Instructor, for the last five years or so, and it paid off for her yesterday.”
Park Hill sophomore Makenna Casey tied in ninth place to finish with all-state honors at the Class 4 State Golf Tournament on Oct. 18.
Silcott was consistent in the tournament, shooting an 87 on the front nine on the opening day and closed out the tournament by shooting an 88 on the back nine on day two. The Platte County senior finished out her career as a 3-time state qualifier, improving in each of her three trips.
“What a rollercoaster of a ride that we were able to be a part of this tournament; there were highs and there were lows, but the ladies found ways to get themselves in the right state of mind to finish the job. We had a great time at the state tournament with a lot of families cheering on their daughters and braving the chilly weather,” Short said.
Silcott wasn’t the only Lady Pirate who made it to the Class 3 State Tournament as Ella Green and Lily Ricketts made the trek to the Columbia Country Club as well. Green tied for 30th place with 186 strokes, shooting an 89 on the front nine and a 97 on the back nine, and Ricketts tied in 62nd place with 202 strokes as she shot a 104 on the first day and improved to 98 strokes on the second day.
“Lily (Ricketts) and Ella (Green) both have another opportunity to make it back to state next year and will use this tournament to fuel their efforts into making it back. Both Ricketts and Green haven’t had a season where they have gone to the state tournament,” Short said.
In the Class 4 State Tournament, Park Hill South sophomore Makenna Casey finished with all-state honors. Casey tied in ninth place when her 80 strokes on each day – totaling 160 – gave the only Lady Panther who qualified for state an impressive finish.
For Park Hill, Makenna Kincheloe was eight strokes shy of Class 4 All-State Honors, ending with 174 strokes and a 26th place finish. Kate Martorana tied in 46th place with 187 strokes and Reagan Bell tied in 56th place with 195 strokes to close out the tournament for the Lady Trojans.