Columbia High School senior Avery Arendell certainly made her fourth and final trip to the IHSA Class 1A State Girls Golf Tournament at Red Tail Run Golf Course in Decatur a worthwhile one.

After shooting a 76 on Friday to advance to Saturday’s final, Arendell shot a sizzling 71 on Saturday for a 3-over-par tourney total. That showing was just one stroke behind Father McGivney’s Sarah Hyten for an individual state title.  

Arendell placed 19th at last year’s state tourney, shooting a 77 on the first day and an 85 on the second.

At the recent Father McGivney Regional, Arendell placed first overall with a 66, besting runner-up Hyten by five strokes.

In addition to her stellar golf game, Arendell plays ice hockey for the St. Louis AAA Lady Blues 19U squad and is a member of the TPH St. Louis Hockey Academy.

In fact, Arendell plans to play both golf and hockey at Aurora University near Chicago upon her graduation from CHS.  

Other state golfers

In boys golf, Waterloo’s Drake Luedeman and Columbia’s Brendan Gibson tied for 70th place at the IHSA Class 2A state tourney, each shooting two-day scores of 162.

At the IHSA Class 1A state tourney, Gibault’s Max Keeven shot a 90 in the first round on Friday.