Dunigan cruises to five shot victory in WGAP Junior Girls' Championship at Applecross

    I’m playing a little catch-up here, but the Women’s Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Junior Girls’ Championship always brings together some familiar names from the Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour and the scholastic scene that this blog is always trying to keep up with, especially during the busy summer season of golf that often sets the scene for the upcoming high school season …

   It could have been a disappointing sophomore season at Unionville for Mary Dunigan last fall.

   She had played in the final group in the PIAA Class AAA Championship at the Heritage Hills Golf Resort as a freshman in 2019, finishing in fifth place, but failed to make it back to states as a sophomore, with a revamped format due to the coronavirus pandemic playing a little bit of a role. But Dunigan still had a very important team goal to pursue and she matched par at Heritage Hills with a 72 to lead the Longhorns to their first PIAA Class AAA team crown.

   Dunigan, the daughter of Golf Digest Top 50 teacher John Dunigan, put her name on an individual trophy earlier this month as she rolled to a five-stroke victory over a couple of PIAA Class AAA qualifiers in the Women’s Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Junior Girls’ Championship held at Applecross Country Club.

   Dunigan, playing out of Kennett Square Golf & Country Club, recovered from a slow start in the opening round to post a solid 3-over-par 75 and then came back with another 75 for a 6-over 150 total.

   Owen J. Roberts junior Stefania Fedun, who finished in 14^th place in the PIAA Class AAA Championship last fall, and Emmaus senior Evelyn Wong, who was fourth in the PIAA Class AAA Championship, shared second place, each landing on 11-over 155.

   Dunigan got off to a tough start in the opening round with a double bogey at the first hole and a string of four straight bogeys at five, six, seven and eight that left her at 6-over. But she righted the ship on the back nine at Applecross with birdies at the 12^th, 14^th and 17^th holes. At 3-over, she held a two-shot lead over Wong and Kayley Roberts, the younger of the two Roberts sisters from Phoenixville.

   Dunigan had another early double bogey in the second round, this time at the second hole. But she steadied herself, making nine straight pars. She made a birdie at the 12^th hole, a bogey at 13, a birdie at 14 and bogeys at the 15^th and 16^th holes to close with a 1-over 38 on the back nine and a second consecutive 3-over 75.

   Fedun had struggled to an opening-round 82, but she came on strong with the best individual round of the tournament, a 1-over 73, in the second round to earn her share of second place. After making a bogey at the sixth hole in her second round, Fedun made birdies at seven and 11 to get it to 1-under for the round before bogeys at 17 and 18 dropped her back to 1-over.

   Wong is home-schooled, but represents Emmaus on the golf course. She birdied the first hole and had 11 pars on her scorecard in an opening-round 77 that left her two shots behind Dunigan. Wong made birdies at the fourth, 13^th and 18^th holes and had eight pars in a 6-over 78 in the second round that enabled her to join Fedun in the tie for second place at 155.

   It was another four shots back to Downingtown East senior Ava O’Sullivan in fourth place as she bounced back from an opening-round 84 with a solid 3-over 75 in the second round that left her with a 159 total.

   O’Sullivan had an outstanding junior season for the Cougars, capturing the individual title in the District One Class AAA Championship and backing that up with a solid third-place finish in the PIAA Class AAA Championship.

   Kayley Roberts couldn’t sustain the momentum from her opening-round 77 as she finished up with an 83 that left her a shot behind O’Sullivan in fifth place with a 160 total.

   Kayley Roberts did win low-Roberts honors, though, as older sister Kate Roberts, a District One Class AAA qualifier as a freshman at Phoenixville last fall, finished three shots behind her younger sister in sixth place with a 163 total. After struggling to an 87 in the opening round, Kate Roberts rebounded with a solid 4-over 76 in the second round.

   Mount St. Joseph senior Caroline Gola finished a shot behind Kate Roberts in seventh place as Gola added a 79 to her opening-round 85 for a 164 total. Gola was a member of the Mount’s 2019 PIAA Class AAA championship team.

   Three players who survived the opening-round cut and played on the second day of the District One Class AAA Championship last fall, O’Sullivan’s Downingtown East teammate Mia Pace, North Penn’s Hayley Ekert and Central Bucks South’s Emma Reilly, rounded out the top 10 in the WGAP Junior Girls.

   Pace shaved seven shots off her opening-round 87 with an 80 in the second round to finish alone in eighth place with a 167 total. Ekert, who added an 85 to her opening-round 83, and Reilly, who posted a pair of 84s, ended up in a tie for ninth place a shot behind Pace at 168.

   Alaina Carson of Broomall captured the top spot in the Junior-Junior Division as she added a 1-over 36 on Applecross’ front nine to the 3-over 38 she recorded in the opening round for a 4-over 74 total that gave her a five-shot victory.

   Carson birdied the eighth hole and had five pars in her opening-round 38 and came back and birdied eight again in the second round and had six pars on her way to a 36.

   Bryn Krosse and Kyla Quimby finished in a tie for second place, each landing on 9-over 79. After struggling to a 44 in the opening round, Krosse matched par in the final round with a 35, the best individual round of the tournament. Quimby added a 4-over 39 to her opening-round 40.

   Hannah Webb added a 40 to her opening-round 45 to finish alone in fourth place with an 85, six shots behind Krosse and Quimby. Charlotte Reid and Emily Maurer were another six shots behind Webb in a tie for fifth place, each registering a 91. Reid added a 45 to her opening-round 46 while Maurer opened with a 45 before finishing up with a 46.

   Katelyn Bodge finished alone in seventh place with a 92 after adding a 49 to her opening-round 43.

   Team Bernardi, Lydia Bernardi and Stella Bernardi, accounted for the next two spots, finishing in eighth and ninth place with respective totals of 99 and 115. Lydia Bernardi added a 51 to her opening-round 48 while Stella Bernardi opened with a 49 before struggling to a 66 in the final round.

   Colbie Tomei rounded out the Junior-Junior field as she finished alone in 10^th place with a 124 total. Tomei struggle to a 66 in the opening round before improving by eight shots in the second round with a 58.