Springs Valley Community High School

For eight years, there was no Patoka Lake Athletic Conference girls’ golf championship. In order for one to be awarded, at least four of the league’s seven schools had to field a team and compete in a conference championship match. Those conditions hadn’t been met in recent years for reasons ranging from COVID-19 to a lack of interest at some schools, but this season they were and on Wednesday five teams gathered at the Valley Links to crown a champion for the first time in nearly a decade. The 2022 champion turned out to be the same as the 2014 champion, the 2013 champion and the 2012 champion. It was Springs Valley. “It’s awesome. I’m just proud of them and happy for them. They deserve everything they get like this,” Springs Valley coach Eric Elkins said. “They’ve been working so hard, working to get their score down…It’s really exciting for them.” The Blackhawks’ team score of 189 not only tied their season-best, it was also far and away the best score of the evening. Paoli was the second-place team and recorded a team score of 223. On top of that, the Blackhawks also had four of their five players make the all-conference team by placing within the top eight places on the individual leaderboard. Mia Cruz finished second, Macy Hall was third, Dallas Hendrix tied for fourth, and Karmen Hall tied for seventh. That sort of all-around success was a positive sign for Elkins, as it proved to his players that the hard work that they’ve put in this season will ultimately pay off. “It’s a testament to how hard they work. When they only give eight (all-conference spots) and you get four of them that’s awesome,” Elkins said. “Not only that, we had second, third, and fourth (place) and I think Karmen was tied for seventh. That just speaks volumes to how hard they’re working.” For all the success that they had in the conference match, the Blackhawks did miss out on one accolade — the individual championship. That honor went to Orleans senior Allison Jones, who just edged out Cruz and Hall with a score of 41. It was disappointing for both players, but it’s also something that they can use to fuel them as they prepare for the postseason as well as proof that they don’t have to play perfectly for Springs Valley to find success as a group. “It shows them that they don’t have to have the lowest score there for our team to do well and that’s what I’ve been stressing to them,” Elkins said. “They just need to keep their averages, keep working and if everybody clicks at the same time we’re going to be a force to be reckoned with.” Springs Valley will return to the course on Thursday, traveling to Otis Park Golf Course to take on Bedford North Lawrence and Brownstown Central. That will provide the Blackhawks with an opportunity to get more familiar with the course, where they’ll be playing their sectional tournament on Saturday. Springs Valley has found success at the Bedford sectional, putting at least one player through to regional in each of the last nine years since being relocated to Bedford. That streak actually extends even further, stretching back at least 14 years to when the Blackhawks played in the Jasper sectional. They’ll be focused on sending more than just one player through though. They’ve got hopes of advancing as a team for the third time in five years and with the way they’ve been playing, they’ll have a chance to do just that. “It’s just awesome that it’s happening now. It’s good fortune,” Elkins said. “I love being consistently under 200 and ever since I told them I wanted to get under 200 they’ve worked at it and we’ve been there. “Otis Park is a different golf course, but we play there tomorrow and we practiced there last night so we’ll get a couple of looks at that course before sectional which will be good for us. They know that they’ve got a good shot.” Team Scores Springs Valley 189, Paoli 223, Crawford County 234, Mitchell 254, Orleans NTS Individual Scores Springs Valley — Mia Cruz 42, Macy Hall 45, Dallas Hendrix 50, Karmen Hall 52, Logan Watts 60