WARSAW — Golf has always been labeled as a frustrating game. That feeling surfaced at the Stonehenge Golf Club Saturday as the Warsaw Girls Golf Sectional played out.

It became a matter of one stroke, or really 13 strokes. It depends on who you ask, but that was the margin that separated Plymouth and Wawasee as both teams turned in 389 team scores, but the fifth-player score of 107 by Kelly Henderson bested Kylee Rostochak’s 120 to move Plymouth onto the regional as the third team.

Warsaw wouldn’t need the added drama, rolling through the course with a 357 to easily outdistance runner-up Rochester’s 371 to take its fourth team title in the past five years. Extra mustard for the Tigers went to Elizabeth Meadows, who claimed the medalist honors after winning a playoff hole against Wawasee’s Mikala Mawhorter after both finished the day with 85s.

Meadows shot a 41 on the front side and finished with a 44 on the back to lead a very consistent day for the host school. Nikki LaLonde turned in an 88, Alex Manwaring a 91 and Morgan Sands a 93 to complete the scoring for the victors, which will take to the Cobblestone Golf Course in Kendallville next Saturday in the East Noble Regional.

“I just walked out there and did what I needed to do,” Meadows said following the playoff, which took place nearly three hours after Warsaw finished its round. “I was completely focused and knew exactly what I needed to do even though I was pretty nervous. But at the same time I knew I could do what I was able to do.”

Added Warsaw head coach Chris LaLonde, “The girls were just really consistent today. We can’t say much to the girls, so it was really good to see them be able to fix some mistakes. Elizabeth walked off 10 with a seven and she was pretty upset about it. I just told her, one shot at a time, which was our theme today.”

The high drama for Wawasee was reserved for the 18th hole. Needing a 95 from Elizabeth Jackson, which meant a birdie on the 18th, to score a 388 and slip past Plymouth, the neon green clad Warriors dotted the hills bordering the left side of the green. As Jackson dropped her third shot within five feet of the hole, her teammates rose, all knowing what needed to be done as the cell phone calculators were all dialed in.

Jackson’s birdie putt, however, rolled just left of the hole, and unaware of what was at stake, the par putt finished a round of 96, one short of what would have been an unbelievable moment. The miss also left Jackson one shot out of the advancing individuals, a shot back of Culver Academy’s Mackenzie Toth.

“It could have been any shot, anywhere on the course,” said a flabbergasted Wawasee head coach Steve Coverstone. “I always tell them, every shot is important. Give Elizabeth a lot of credit. She pretty much knew she needed par, par to be in contention and she went par, par. Under that kind of pressure, that is pretty good.”

Wawasee used Mawhorter’s 85 and Jackson’s 96 along with a 103 from Alex Goralczyk and 105 from Courtney McDaniel. Plymouth had a 92 from Lauren Rearick, 94 from Emily Berger, 101 from Morgan Oberley and 102 from Emily Denney.

Joining Mawhorter and Toth on the individual list of those advancing is Sam Seibel, also of Culver Academy, who shot an 86. Seibel had the best nine-hole score of the day with a 38 on the front side, one better than what Mawhorter put together.

“I didn’t think I could actually shoot a 39 on the front nine,” Mawhorter said. “I was like, alright a birdie on the first hole, one under, let’s keep going. Then I doubled the next hole…I remembered Tiger Woods even had sevens on par threes. I was able to par the next hole, felt alright, and never really looked back.”

Whitko, Tippecanoe Valley and Triton all had tough starts and never recovered. Hannah Jennings had a 99 to lead the Lady Trojans, Allyson Ross a 101 for the Lady Vikings and April Bishop a 115 for the Lady Wildcats.

Warsaw Girls Golf Sectional at Stonehenge Country Club (Par 71)

Warsaw 357
Rochester 371
Plymouth 389* (advances on fifth score)
Wawasee 389
Culver Academy 423
Columbia City 441
Triton 478
Whitko 493
Tippecanoe Valley 540

Warsaw
Nikki LaLonde 88
Elizabeth Meadows 85
Alex Manwaring 91
Morgan Sands 93
Ashley Murrell 118

Rochester
Karsten Lingenfelter 95
Kovenant Lingenfelter 88
Lauren Daugherty 88
Kaitlin Foust 100
Lindsay Mitchell 118

Plymouth
Emily Berger 94
Lauren Rearick 92
Emily Denney 102
Morgan Oberley 101
Kelly Henderson 107

Wawasee
Elizabeth Jackson 96
Mikala Mawhorter 85
Kylee Rostochak 120
Alex Goralczyk 103
Courtney McDaniel 105

Culver Academy
Sam Seibel 86
Mackenzie Toth 95
Maureen Reed 118
Gracen Hirschy 126
Makenna Morsches 124

Columbia City
Jackie Leeuw 113
Jessica Klemm 102
Allison Yoder 106
Sydney Ford 120
Mecenzie Lane 121

Triton
Hannah Jennings 99
Elizabeth Erne 106
Lillie Berger 136
Courtney Zentz 182
Kayla Kreft 137

Whitko
April Bishop 115
Emily Weigold 145
Hannah Himes 125
Samantha Shell 121
Taylor Pottenger 132

Tippecanoe Valley
Allyson Ross 101
Kara Eaton 132
Elizabeth Vanmeter 128
Emily Gelbaugh 179