By Mike London
mike.london@salisburypost.com

SOUTHERN PINES — East Rowan girls golf coach Tinsley Merrell promised toe touches for every par Hannah Waddell made, and she got plenty of exercise on the back nine.

Waddell made six pars on the back side on Tuesday on the second day of the 3A State Championships at Longleaf. She shot 45-43 — 88 and tied for 20th for the tournament.

Waddell, who shot 90 in Monday’s first round, closed her season with three consecutive pars.

Waddell made two pars on the front nine for a total of eight for the day. She made five bogeys, three double bogeys and one triple.

“A lot more pars today for Hannah and  I got a lot more smiles out of her today,” Merrell said. “We really had some fun out there. I got to yell out, ‘Get in the hole!’ on one of her shots. She couldn’t believe I yelled like that, but it got a big smile out of her.”

Merrell said Waddell hasn’t been as consistent off the tee as she normally is during the last few weeks. And she’s been struggling some with her approach shots.

“When you’re squibbing it off the tee it can make for a long day on the golf course,” Merrell said. “But Hannah stayed very calm and controlled both days here, and she got back on track. She ended her season very well. I’ve watched her play in the state tournament three straight years and fully expect to make it four next year.”

Waddell, a junior, was the South Piedmont Conference champ and the Rowan County co-champ, so she turned in another stellar season.

She is capable of shooting in the high 70s, but she hit a bit of a slump down the stretch, with a 91 in rainy conditions at the Rowan County Championships and a 95 in windy and cold West Regional play in Lenoir.

“Hannah is never going to be completely happy about what she shoots, but she played the best today she has in quite a while,” Merrell said. “I told her if she made a birdie, I’d try some double toe touches. It might be a good thing for me that she didn’t get one.”

South Rowan junior Kassidy Sechler, the only other girl from the Rowan schools to qualify for the state event, improved quite a bit from Monday to Tuesday.

She shot 114 on Monday, when jitters had to be a factor, but she was back closer to her average with a 50-50 – 100 on the second day.

After a 10 and a 9 during her first round, she avoided any disaster holes on her second round. She made one par and seven bogeys. She had nine double bogeys and one triple.

Sechler finished in a tie for 67th.

Eastern Alamance’s Emily Mathews shot a sensational 66 in the second round to easily win her third straight individual title. She shot 73 on Monday.

Fike won the team title.

•••

In the 1A/2A Championships at Foxfire, Gray Stone’s Hannah Lineberry shot 97-94 — 191 and tied for 24th.

She had a roller-coaster 41-53 — 94 on Tuesday. She made pars on four straight holes on the front nine.

Newton-Conover won the team title. Pine Lake Prep’s Caroline Johnson shot 76-72 — 148 to take the individual title.

•••

North Hills freshman Reese Merrell shot 13-over 85 in the NCISAA Championships held at Bryan Park in Browns Summit and tied for 21st.