Springhaven's Smith wins WGAP Junior Girls' Championship at Phoenixville

   I’m a little late with this, but there’s been a lot of golf going on …

   I was chatting with Strath Haven’s Kevin Smith at the Central League Championship last fall at Turtle Creek Golf Club.

   Smith, a junior then, was a little disappointed in his 11^th-place finish after he carded a 77 at the Turtle. But he couldn’t help bragging a little about his younger sister Grace Smith, who had posted a solid 79 to finish third as a freshman in the league championship.

   Kevin Smith’s little sister, he told me, had really just gotten serious about playing golf and he was pretty proud of how much she had improved in a short period of time.

   Well, Grace Smith’s improvement was on display July 1 and 2 when she captured the Women’s Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Junior Girls’ Championship at Phoenixville Country Club.

   Smith, playing out of The Springhaven Club, carded rounds of 83 and 84 for a 167 total that was four shots better than Mary Dunigan, who matched Smith’s second-round 84 after opening with an 87 for a 171 total.

   Smith came right back the following Monday to post a solid 81 at St. Davids Golf Club and earn a spot in the match-play bracket in the WGAP Match Play Championship. Smith fell in the opening round of match play, dropping a 4 and 2 decision to Tavistock Country Club’s Mary McGuiness, but it was a pretty strong showing for the newly crowned WGAP Junior Girls’ champion.

   Third place in the WGAP Junior Girls’ Championship went to Ava O’Sulllivan, a freshman on the Downingtown East team that was the runnerup in the PIAA Class AAA team competition last fall. O’Sullivan’s second-round 80 was the best round of the tournament and, combined with her opening-round 93, left her two shots behind Dunigan at 173.

   Kate Roberts added a 95 to her opening-round 93 to finish fourth with a 188 total, 15 shots behind O’Sullivan. Rachel Joyce shaved nine shots off her opening-round 101 with a 92 to take fifth at 193.

   Riley Thomas and Nimah Narinesingh-Smith finished in a tie for sixth at 194. Thomas added a 93 to her opening-round 101 and Narinesingh-Smith opened with a 96 before finishing up with a 98.

   Talia Hofner took top honors in the Junior-Junior division with nines of 60 and 55 for a 115 total. Kate Thomas carded nines of 63 and 62 to earn runnerup honors with a 125 total.