E.A. Sports Today

State champs

Led by seventh-grader Stokes, Alexandria finishes off second team state title in girls’ golf and first in 16 years at RTJ-The Shoals.

Flanked by assistant coach Brenard Howard (left) and head coach Craig Kiker, Alexandria’s girls’ golf team poses with the state-championship trophy they won over Monday and Tuesday at RTJ-The Shoals. (Submitted photo)

By East Alabama Sports Today

FLORENCE — History doesn’t often repeat, but it rhymes like a rapper.

Playing on the same course where they won a state title in 2008, Alexandria’s girls finished off their second state title Tuesday, shooting 22 over par as a team at RTJ-The Shoals to beat West Point by 11 strokes.

Gulf Shores finished 23 strokes back in third, and St. Paul’s was 26 shots off the pace in fourth.

Alexandria led by nine strokes after Monday’s first round, and weather shortened Tuesday’s final round to nine holes. Seventh-grader Jasmine Stokes led the Valley Cubs in third place, shooting 83-38121. She finished 10 strokes back of medalist Polly Kate McCracken, of Hayden and seven strokes behind Beauregard’s Kylee Lynn, the first-round leader.

Alexandria’s Nevaeh Foster tied for eight at 85-47—132, and Avery Prickett rounded out players who factored in the team score in 10th place (88-45—133).

Marlee Hedgpeth (93-50143) was 15th.

Alexandria assistant coach Brenard Howard provides the historical bridge between state championships. He was head coach in 2008.

Foster is his grand daughter.

“I know it’s a cool story,” Alexandria head coach Craig Kiker said. “In 2008, it was kind of the same situation. It was in Muscle Shoals, where we were today. We were up, if not the the same amount, almost the same amount we were after the first day.

“For us to kind of repeat that with Coach Howard and his grand daughter there, as a player, that was awesome to me.”

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