Pine Lake, East Lincoln Claim State Girls Golf Titles

Pine Lake High School golfers captured their fourth consecutive state championship in the 3A division last week. The team also claimed the 7A title, marking the program's first state crown in that classification.

Paisley Freda and Taylor Pike secured their final state titles as seniors. Freda won the individual championship by two strokes after shooting a 71 in the first round. That score gave her a five-shot lead entering the second day. Taylor Pike finished fourth, marking her second consecutive top-five finish. The Pride defeated East Rutherford by 17 strokes.

East Lincoln High School dominated the 5A field, winning its first state title by 40 strokes over Fike. Sophomore Kennedy Gallentine captured the individual title with rounds of 70 and 72. Those were the two lowest scores of the tournament. Freshman Sloan McKinney finished as the state runner-up with rounds of 77 and 75.

Lake Norman Charter High School won its second consecutive 4A championship. The team beat Stuart Cramer by 35 strokes. Junior Seehe Veera tied for fourth place, and senior Caitlyn Frisch finished sixth. Freshman Peyton Chapman placed 12th, while junior Emmi Vongmongkol finished 14th. Freshman Katie Preski finished 37th in her first state appearance.

The 7A division required a tiebreaker to determine the winner. Lake Norman defeated Cardinal Gibbons on the first playoff hole to claim the trophy. Senior Kami Caraccia led the team with a fourth-place finish. Junior Ella Martin placed 15th, sophomore Olivia Martin finished 22nd, senior Taylor Mick was 25th, and junior Julia Hammond ended 31st.

Four local teams won state championships last week. Pine Lake and Lake Norman Charter secured back-to-back titles in their respective divisions. East Lincoln and Lake Norman won their first state championships in the 5A and 7A divisions, respectively.