ALEXANDRIA – Even in a supposed reloading year, Columbus Academy’s girls golf team keeps finding ways to top itself in pursuit of a fifth consecutive Division II state championship.
The Vikings put themselves on the doorstep of that achievement with another strong district tournament Sept. 28 at Links at Echo Springs, with their top two competitors sharing the individual title and paving for the way for an even better score at this stage than a year ago.
Senior Eva Lim and junior Claire Zeiger both shot 1-under-par 71 to share first place, sophomore Niya Chebli finished fourth (76) and the Vikings’ two remaining competitors each finished in the top eight to lead Academy to a team score of 297, a 44-shot win over runner-up Columbus School for Girls
and its sixth district title in a row.
“They do a really nice job of pushing each other a little bit and encouraging each other to go to the next level,” Vikings coach Maggie Freytag said. “They play a lot in the offseason, they play competitively. We played at the national tournament. We have been working hard all year long and encouraging each other, so we are very pleased with where we are today.”
Sophomore Ava Hammond was seventh (79) and senior Meera Srini tied for eighth (82) as Academy eclipsed last year’s district score by one shot.
Lim, the two-time defending individual state champion, parred 11 holes with four birdies and won the district title for the third time in four years. She won outright as a sophomore in 2024 and shared first a season ago with now-graduated teammate Nala Chebli.
“I love having my teammates do well with me. It’s an honor to share it,” Lim said. “I think it’s just awesome how we spike and perform well when it matters. That really shows our team character and how we handle pressure. We’ve all been here. We all get the gist of this. It’s all about applying the same ideas, same approach we hold in any tournament.”
Zeiger was similarly steady, recording nine straight pars from Nos. 3-11 with birdies on Nos. 12, 17 and 18.
“I have just really focused on, first of all, my mentality, getting into a good place where no matter what I shoot, I’m OK with it,” Zeiger said. “Day in and day out, I have been dedicated to the sport. Even though all your hard work doesn’t always go into the result, I think it’s really important to keep going and just keep trying on every shot you have.”
Lakewood (385), Fairbanks (389), Utica (422) and North Union (442) rounded out the team scoring.
Only the district champion and top individual not on the qualifying team advanced to state Oct. 11 and 12 at Firestone Country Club in Akron.
Lakewood junior Emery Lingo shot a 74 and had to wait for almost an hour to see if she earned the individual berth to state.
She did, using a round with 13 pars and two birdies to edge CSG senior Reagan Hoffmans by two shots. Hoffman’s teammate, senior Quinn Aubert, shot a 78.
“I think I shaved off 10 or 15 strokes from last year,” said Lingo, Lakewood’s first state qualifier since Avery Thompson tied Lim for state runner-up as a senior in 2023. “That, to me, is amazing. Distance played a big part, but also practice. I just put in a lot more work.”
High school sports reporter Dave Purpura can be reached at dpurpura@dispatch.com and at @dp_dispatch on X.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Academy girls golfers win sixth straight district title
