Cruising to state

Earlier in the season, Leonard Kull knew he might have a special group with him.

The Washington girls? golf head coach had the idea that great things could happen with his team, and Tuesday helped remove any doubt that may have been lingering.

The Demons went to St. Andrews golf course in Cedar Rapids on Tuesday, and took a decisive regional final victory, posting an 18-hole team score of 340, 56 strokes better than second-place Fairfield.

That mark will push the Demons as a team to the state golf tournament for the second-straight season.

?At the beginning of the year, we didn?t know exactly what we had,? Kull said. ?We knew we had good players, but whether things came together, who knows? I have been pleased with the camaraderie the ladies have shown and the team spirit they are showing. They are playing for one another and not individually. This has been a wild ride up to this point.?

Helping the Demons take such a convincing victory were first-, second- and third- place finishes by their top three golfers, freshman Sarah Nacos, junior Deanna Peiffer and senior Sarah Waite.

Nacos won the regional with a 79 on a wet and rainy day in Cedar Rapids, while Peiffer followed her with an 81. Waite carded an 86 to take third place at the meet, which Kull said took 7 ½ hours.

?We had a rain delay, so we had to stop,? Kull said. ?We waited for it to drain, and it took us about 7 1/2 hours (to get through the round). They were exhausted. It?s a credit to them. They didn?t complain, and we finally got it away. They lost their edge a little bit (in the second round), but that is certainly understandable. It was an excellent day.?

Brenna Burlingame carded a 96 to round out the counting scores for the Demons, while Megan Strabala used one of her best rounds to finish with a 100 and Meredith Lumburg took a 116 into the clubhouse.

Kull noted that every member of the team played a contributing role in getting back to the state tournament.

?If you don?t have four scores, you aren?t going anywhere as a team,? Kull said. ?They are just as important as anyone on the team. We don?t have a hierarchy, and everyone has to perform well for the collective to do well. This year, that?s happened. We have a couple that have done some heavy lifting, but they just give the other young ladies the confidence to do well.?

Last year, the Demons took eighth at the state meet, but in 2015, they figure to be a strong contender for the state title. With the added pressure, it?s going to come down to playing their style in Marshalltown on Monday.

?It?s going to be a new day starting on Monday,? Kull said. ?A few of the girls have played the course in the past. Hopefully we can get a practice round, then give them the weekend to rest up and get prepared. I?m feeling really good. The scores that came in match up favorably, but you don?t play on paper, you play on the course. We should be confident that we are in the hunt.?

The meet will be a two-day event beginning on June 1 at the American Legion Memorial Golf Course in Marshalltown.