They attend rival schools, but Kentridge\u2019s Lauren Sewell and Kentwood\u2019s Rui Li are anything but bitter foes.<\/p>\n
Matter of fact, when the two super sophomores tee it up during Tuesday and Wednesday\u2019s Class 4A state golf tournament at Bellingham\u2019s Sudden Valley Golf Course, they\u2019ll be each other\u2019s biggest fan.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve played in a lot of stuff together, which has made us better friends,\u201d Sewell acknowledges. \u201cIt\u2019s good to have good friends out there because it makes it less tense.\u201d<\/p>\n
Li agrees.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re good friends,\u201d said Li, who added that the two actually met through training together with Jeff Coston, who has played on the PGA and Nike Tour and is based out of Semiahmoo in Blaine. \u201cIf we weren\u2019t going to rival schools, we\u2019d definitely be even closer.\u201d<\/p>\n
That said, it\u2019s hard to separate the two from a golf perspective.<\/p>\n
That much was evident last spring, when, as freshmen, Sewell took seventh at the state tournament while Li nabbed 10th. Just two strokes separated them, with Sewell carding a two-day total of 155. Li was at 157.<\/p>\n
The area\u2019s top two female golfers continued their friendly rivalry this past fall during the medalist tournament at Gold Mountain in Bremerton, when Li took the South Puget Sound League crown, posting a two-day score of 149. And, as expected, Sewell wasn\u2019t far behind, finishing in a three-way tie for second with Bethel\u2019s Sadena Parks and Decatur\u2019s Stacy Blunt at 153.<\/p>\n
In preparation for the state tournament, the four state-bound golfers teed it up again last Tuesday in the Kentridge Invitational at Fairwood Golf and Country Club. This time, however, Parks bagged top honors with a 70 followed by Sewell (74) while Li tied with Bethel High\u2019s Jackie Brown for third (79).<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just a preview of what might happen (at state),\u201d Sewell said.<\/p>\n
Kentridge coach Todd Nicholson believes Sewell\u2019s assessment is right on.<\/p>\n
\u201cLi and Sewell are both very solid golfers, with no real weaknesses,\u201d he said. \u201cEach is capable of a top-five finish at state next week. But on any given day in golf … it will be interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course, both Sewell and Li have big plans for next week\u2019s tournament. While Parks, a senior who took third at state last year, and Kamiak sophomore Seo Hee Moon remain the favorites, Sewell and Li anticipate being in the title hunt too.<\/p>\n
When that hunt hits its fever pitch \u2013 though they\u2019ll undoubtedly be trading words of encouragement \u2013 Sewell and Li will put their friendship aside and take aim at the same thing.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy goal is to win. I am not thinking about last year,\u201d Li said. \u201cI am thinking about now.\u201d<\/p>\n
No matter the final result, however, Sewell admits, it just might be somewhat bittersweet.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s kind of tough,\u201d Sewell said. \u201cShe\u2019s a good friend and I want her to do well. It\u2019s tough, because at the same time, I want the same for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unfinished business<\/b><\/p>\n
Forgive Chris Cho if he\u2019s feeling a bit incomplete these days.<\/p>\n
Sure, Cho is unquestionably among the best golfers Kentridge High has ever produced.<\/p>\n
And, yes, he has a full-ride scholarship to the University of Idaho in hand.<\/p>\n
But the Kentridge senior is still in search of the one thing that has eluded him the last three years: a state championship.<\/p>\n
\u201cAccording to the previous three years, getting top-five all three years, it would be nice to win one eventually,\u201d Cho said. \u201cI was planning on winning it junior year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Though it didn\u2019t happen, Cho certainly was \u2014 as always \u2014 impressive, tying for third with a two-day total of 141. That final tally was just four strokes behind champion Kevin Penner of Eastlake.<\/p>\n
But after taking second his freshman year and fifth as a sophomore, Cho was anticipating a bit more.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was a little disappointed I didn\u2019t play as well as I wanted to play,\u201d he said. \u201cI thought the way the course was laid out, I could get it done.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cho, who plays year-round and is part of the American Junior Golf Association, hopes to do just that Tuesday and Wednesday, when he takes his final shot at a title during the Class 4A state tournament at Burlington\u2019s Avalon Golf Links.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be honest, it\u2019s not as big as playing in the (Amateur Golf Association) tournaments, But to tell you the truth, state, even though it\u2019s smaller than the rest, it\u2019s still a big tournament,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s the most competitive (classification) in Washington … just playing well makes me expand my name in the state of Washington.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis tournament is a big deal to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
.STATE GOLF GLANCE<\/p>\n
\u2022 WHAT: Boys and girls Class 4A state golf tournament.<\/p>\n
\u2022 WHEN: Tuesday and Wednesday, May 20-2.<\/p>\n
\u2022 WHERE: Boys \u2014 Avalon Golf Links in Burlington. Girls \u2014 Sudden Valley Golf Course in Bellingham.<\/p>\n
\u2022 WHO: The top 80 male and female prep golfers in the state earned spots in the tournament. The top 40 golfers in each gender advance to the second day of the tournament. The South Puget Sound League is sending the top 18 boys and top 17 girls from the fall\u2019s medalist tournament.<\/p>\n
\u2022 LOCALS IN ACTION: Boys \u2014 Kent Hagen (Kentwood), Thomas Zavada (Kentwood), Andrew Zavada (Kentwood), Nick Varelia (Kentwood), Sean McMullen (Kentridge), Andrew Scott (Kentlake), C.J. Munko (Tahoma). Girls \u2014 Rui Li (Kentwood), Lauren Sewell (Kentridge), Tickle Yamanaka (Kentridge), Krystina Zerr (Kentridge), Kelli Wyatt (Kentlake), Jacki Yanamura (Kentlake); Leslie Sampson (Tahoma), Alisa Fairweather (Tahoma).<\/p>\n
\u2022 FAVORITES: Boys \u2014 Chris Cho, Kentridge; Kevin Penner, Eastlake; Reid Martin, Kamiak. Girls \u2014 Seo Hee Moon, Kamiak, Sadena Parks, Bethel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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