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Devils golf four-peats at regionals

Chris Freud

For the fourth time in a row, the ladies are the champs.

Eagle Valley girls golf four-peated at the 4A Western Slope Regional Golf Tournament Tuesday at Tia Rado in Grand Junction. The quartet of Charly Hoehn, Mandy Preston, Miranda Cox and Jill Ewing is off to the Colorado Springs Country Club next week to compete for a state title.

“It’s really incredible for a small team like ours that’s not as established as others,” senior Miranda Cox said. “I awesome. I hope this carries on to the freshmen and other girls in the future who play on this team. We’re very excited.”



Two factors make this win all the more impressive. One, the Devils ran away from the field. Eagle Valley won with a score of 272, 28 strokes ahead of second-place Glenwood Springs.

While Aspen’s Kristin Walla won individual honors with an 87, Eagle Valley’s quartet went two through five. Charly Hoehn was the silver medalist with a 90. Mandy Preston and Miranda Cox tied for third at 91, and Jill Ewing took fifth with a 93.

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“It means a lot,” Devils coach Glen Ewing said. “These girls like to golf. They golf all summer. They work at their golf and they’re pretty darn good at it.”

Not only did the Devils run away and hide from the competition, they did so on particularly ugly day in Grand Junction. Call if the British Open on steroids. Ewing estimated that the wind was gusting at 40 knots at some points, and rain pelted the golfers for most of the day.

“It was hard,” Preston said. “I had to aim way off the fairways to compensate for the wind.”

Taking nothing away from these talented golfers, but you have to give their home course, Cotton Ranch, some credit here. Having practiced at Cotton Ranch, which has a little bit of everything when it comes to the elements, especially in the early spring, the Devils are pretty much prepared for whatever weather may come.

“The girls just played steady golf,” Glen Ewing said. “There was nothing that was really fantastic or noting that was really bad. They were just steady and tough all the way. They didn’t let the weather get to them. There were other girls on the course who got rained on and that was it for them.”

“Definitely (playing at Cotton Ranch) is a great example of that,” Hoehn said. “I didn’t play that great today, but my team really stepped it up. They know how to play in bad weather. It’s about where we practice and the bad conditions were in favor of our team.”

Next up is state. The ladies have a practice rounds Saturday and Sunday before Monday’s and Tuesday’s 36-hole main event.

Last year, the Lady Devils finished second to Mullen and so they’re looking to take that final step next week.

“Having won so may tournaments this year really helps,” Cox said. “At state, our main competition is Mullen. A tournament like we just had will prepare us for anything at state.”

“I think we have a huge advantage having the experience,” said Hoehn, who like Cox and Preston have been to state the three previous seasons. “We know that if we play our games – with the other team’s rosters changing and those girls don’t have state experience – I think our team has to be a favorite.”

Then, there’s a little individual dual between Hoehn and Aspen’s Walla.

“That definitely left a bitter taste in my mouth,” Hoehn said. “It’ll be on at state.”


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