High school girls golf: Raiders wrap up season in regional
Published 11:25 pm Monday, October 20, 2025
Staff report
PILOT MOUNTAIN — The Pilot Knob Park Golf Course, the site of Monday’s 4A West Regional, has a reputation for toughness.
“I look at it as a very tough course even in ideal conditions,” South girls coach Jeremy Boice said. “The girls aren’t used to the undulating greens they have there, all the changes in elevation on putts. Some balls rolled and rolled and rolled. None of them ever gave up on a hole, but putting was a challenge.”
Add 18 windy holes to the mix, and you’ve a recipe for a potential disaster, but all three Raider golfers survived. They didn’t qualify to advance to the state event, but they survived.
Actually, Sawyer Sherrill thrived more than survived. The junior played some of the best golf of her career, especially early in her round.
“We started on the 10th hole and Sawyer shot 45 on the back nine,” Boice said. “That was probably a career best for nine, and to do it with the pressure of the regional and on the course she was playing was remarkable. She was a bright spot. Her drives, her approach shots, her chips were all spot on. She made some tough putts. This can be an important round for her because it showed her what she is capable of doing.”
Sherrill wore down some at the end and finished with triple bogeys, but she still shot 51 on the back for a 96 and finished tied for 23rd.
Senior Margo Maples led the Raiders with a 93. She shot a lot of 42s and 43s in nine-hole matches this season, so this was close to her norm. She finished tied for 19th.
It took a 91 to qualify for state as an individual, so Maples didn’t miss by much.
The top three teams, plus the top nine individuals not on those three teams, advanced.
“The tough thing for Margo was that there have been years when the 93 she shot today would have made states,” Boice said. ‘But with the move to eight classifications, fewer individuals get to go to states. And there are a lot of good golfers making up the field in 4A West.”
Senior Sara Culbert, frequently South’s best scorer, didn’t have her best day and shot 101. She tied for 32nd.
The 93-96-101 scores gave South a 290 team total. The Raiders placed seventh in the team scoring.
Regional champ Lake Norman Charter (243), Stuart Cramer (246) and Central Davidson (267) were the advancing teams.
“It’s disappointing not to be able to continue the season at state, but there was nothing to be disappointed about as far as our overall season,” Boice said. “We were second to East Rowan) in a lot of South Piedmont Conference matches and we tied them at Rolling Hills when Sara was medalist. We made the trip up here for the regional with three all-conference golfers, and there’s no way I can be disappointed with that. The girls competed their best on every hole today, and they have always been great girls to coach.”
The 5A West Regional will be held at Stonebridge in Monroe on Tuesday.
“We’ll be rooting the RoCo girls on,” Boice said. “We compete with them, but they’re our friends. Tinsley Merrell (East Rowan’s coach) gave us a lot of encouragement and support today.”