WATERTOWN – Brynn Roehrich overcame expectations and pressure to win her second straight Class B State Girls’ Golf Tournament individual championship on Tuesday.

Roehrich, who was runner-up in 2023, shot a two-round total of 144 to win the tourney by four strokes. The sophomore found extra motivation on the way to winning both of her titles.

“It feels really good again, obviously. I feel like last year was so special, because we had a senior on the team and she graduated,” Roehrich said. “This year I feel like is just as special as my sister joined me on my team, so that was pretty great.”

Playing with a sibling can be complicated, but the Roehrich sisters support each other in the best way possible.

“The first day she struggled a little bit, and I was just there for her right after she got done. I was the first one to give her a hug,” said Roehrich said of her sister, Faith. “We both hope the best for each other. And I don’t know for sure, but if the time would come and she beat me, obviously I would be very happy for her.”

Faith Roehrich finished 12th in her first state tournament appearance.

The two sisters had an advantage on most of the competition as the state tournament was hosted at Prairie Winds Golf Course just a short commute from their house.

“So, I actually live seven minutes from Prairie Winds. Me and my sister play this course every day. We’re members here, so it was definitely an advantage to have playing it so much,” Roehrich said. “I kind of knew the course like the back of my hand. I knew where you should be and where you shouldn’t be.”

Despite her familiarity with the course, Roehrich still felt pressure this year because of the expectation to defend her state title. She used advice from her personal coach Eric Stevens to help her out.

“I was just struggling with expectations. I felt like people, since I won it last year, they were gonna expect me to just come in and win again. And Eric kind of told me that the people that think that don’t know the game of golf. They don’t know it’s not that easy,” Roehrich said. “Eric always told us that we can only control the things that we could control.”

She applied that idea while she was playing and only worried about her game, not knowing exactly how much of a lead she owned.

“I’m gonna be honest, I had no idea where I was sitting going into the last hole,” Roehrich. “I had no idea if I had a lead, and if I did have a lead, how many strokes was I up. I had no idea.”

Miller’s Jayce Pugh finished in third shooting a 151, and her teammate Kaihlyn Anderberg took sixth with a 169. The duo helped Miller to a second-place team finish, with the Roehrich sisters leading Clark-Willow Lake to a third-place finish. Dell Rapids St. Mary won the girls’ team title.

Olivia Olson of Sully Buttes finished fifth with a 168, and Taryn Hettick of Selby Area finished tied for seventh with a 170. Olivia Knox of Doland tied for 16th with a 179, and Mollie Simon of Ipswich and Anika Mueller of Faulkton both tied for 19th with rounds of 183.

To see complete girls’ results, click on the following link:

https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/11544470314570241815

In the Clas B Boys’ State Tournament at Cattail Crossing, last year’s state champion Gavin Colson of Sully Buttes finished second shooting a 148, three strokes behind Trevor Schulz of Wall.

Although Colson wasn’t able to defend his title, he was still pleased with his performance.

“You’ll never hear me complain about today’s second-place finish,” Colson said. “Going into the tournament, obviously being back-to-back state champ was the goal, but the outcome of the tournament is nothing to be ashamed of.”

Colson had some familiarity with the Cattail Crossing course, and used the prior week to set himself up for success.

“I’ve played this course numerous times on the SDGA summer golf tour, which definitely helped just having a little insight into how the course plays,” Colson said. “And to be completely honest, I’ve been in Watertown playing nearly every day on the course since (last) Monday. To say the least, I was very knowledgeable on the course layout and the best places to be.”

In complete opposite fashion of Roehrich, Colson kept track of the scores throughout the tournament, helping him to know how to play each hole.

“Unlike some, I do keep track of who’s winning and the leaderboard throughout the tournament,” Colson said. “My position on the leaderboard very much does affect how aggressive or conservative I need to play the holes to come.”

Hanson the boys’ team championship with Wall in second. Clark-Willow Lake finished third in the team standings. Sully Buttes tied for fourth and Miller tied for seventh.

Wolsey-Wessington’s Lars Tvedt tied for fourth with a 150, Kaden Weinreis of Doland was 10th with a 153, Oliver Fritzsche of Miller tied for 11th with a 154, Clark-Willow Lake’s Kooper Wookey and Kaden Wookey tied for 15th with rounds of 156, and Seth Hettick of Edmunds Central, and Seth Lesnar of Webster tied for 20th with rounds of 159.

To see complete boys’ results, click on the following link:

https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/11544476228236891932