Jun. 4—YANKTON — Mitchell High School senior Allison Meyerink made school history on Tuesday afternoon, becoming the first Kernel girl to win a state individual golf championship.
Meyerink shot a final round 74, finishing with a two-day score of 5-over-par 149 and bested Aberdeen Central’s Olivia Braun by one shot for the individual title at Hillcrest Golf and Country Club in Yankton.
Entering the day three shots back, Meyerink set the tone on Day 2 of the competition with an opening eagle on the par-5 No. 1 hole, setting the table for the Kernel senior to finish the front nine at 1-under-par thanks to a birdie at the No. 8 hole.
Meyerink added another birdie at the par-4 10th and played consistent enough down the stretch to get the job done, despite bogeys at the 16th and 17th holes. Braun birdied the par-4 18th hole but Meyerink finished with a par to close out the one-shot victory.
Meyerink is the third Kernel golfer to win an individual state title. She joins boys winners Dave Hockett (1985) and Aaron Hieb (2004) as past MHS champions.
As for a second consecutive team championship in Class AA, that turned out to be just out of reach for the Kernels. Mitchell, which led by one shot entering Tuesday’s final 18 holes, shot 321 for the day as a team, a 10-stroke improvement over Day 1. But Watertown, which went into the day two shots off the team lead in third place, shot 316 as a team and finished with a two-day score of 649, three shots ahead of Mitchell, which carded a 652 as a team.
Aberdeen Central was third at 664, followed by O’Gorman (690) and Sioux Falls Lincoln (716) in the top-five.
It is the fourth consecutive season that Mitchell has finished in the top-two slots in the Class AA team standings, taking second place in 2021 and 2022, as well. Mitchell won the state title by three strokes in 2023.
Maddie Childs finished tied for third place with a two-day score of 156, shooting 78 both days. Meyerink and Childs were both selected to the Class AA all-tournament team with finishes in the top-six.
Mitchell’s Quinn Dannenbring shot 168 for the tournament, including 81 on Saturday, to take 11th place, and Mia Larson shot 91-88 for a two-day score of 179 and in 24th place. Ava Eliason tied for 34th place with a score of 188, shooting 91-97, and Anna Eliason finished tied for 51st, shooting 102-98—200 over two days.
This story will be updated.