ASHLAND — Kira Moore’s wish came true.
The Ashland senior will cap her career at this weekend’s Division I state tournament at Ohio State’s Gray Course after the Arrows won last week’s district crown at Stone Ridge for the third straight year.
Moore will be making her fourth consecutive state appearance. Ashland was district runner-up her freshman year, earning the second of two available state tournament bids.
Back when the season teed off in August, Moore was cautiously optimistic the state tournament would be held. Golf was the first high school sport to restart amid the coronavirus pandemic and nobody knew how — or if — the season would progress.
“I feel like the state tournament is going to happen,” Moore said after the season-opening Shelby Invitational. “I’d be disappointed if it didn’t, but it’s not something I can control. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”
The Arrows didn’t need any luck at last week’s district tournament. Ashland shot a 332 for a 10-stroke victory over runner-up Toledo Notre Dame. The 332 was the lowest district score during Ashland’s four-year state-qualifying run, topping last year’s 335 and 2017’s 336.
“If I could have laid out a game plan and asked the girls to go execute it, that’s exactly what they did,” Ashland coach Tom Marquette said last week. “I couldn’t be happier for the entire team.”
Moore was Ashland’s No. 2 golfer the past three years behind Anna Watson, who graduated last spring and is a freshman at Eastern Michigan. In Watson’s absence, Moore has moved up to the No. 1 spot and the Arrows haven’t missed a beat. Ashland won the North Central Ohio Girls Golf League team title at Brookside with a 336 and followed up with a sectional title at Sycamore Springs.
That set the table for last week’s impressive showing in Bowling Green. Junior Klaira Paramore shot a team-low 76 followed by Moore’s 79. Senior Sarah Anderson shot an 82, while senior Livia Sponsler had a 95 and sophomore Emma Packard had a 96.
Paramore is making her third state tournament appearance while Anderson will tee it up on OSU’s Gray Course for a second year.
“These girls have played in some big tournaments and I think that experience helps them this time of year,” Marquette said. “We play a really tough schedule and we play several really demanding courses and I think at this time of year that benefits them.”
Ashland finished eighth at state in 2017 and was fourth in 2018. Last year the Arrows finished sixth with a two-day total of 644.
Moore fired a 152, good for 19th place overall. Paramore shot a 165 and Anderson had a 191.
“The thing about this team compared to last year is maybe things don’t come as easy for them but they just work so hard and it’s all coming together now,” Marquette said. “Our goal is to be playing our best golf at the end of the year. We’ve got one more change to go out and play even better.”
