No drama this time. Timberline senior cruises to another district golf championship
Tuesday turned into a relaxing day at the golf course for Timberline’s Ella Arnzen.
The senior was the first one in the clubhouse after the 6A District Three Girls Golf Tournament at the Boise Ranch Golf Course, turning in a scorecard with a 3-under round of 68.
No competitor came within nine strokes of the Austin Peay commit, allowing her to kick back and cheer on her teammates as the scores rolled in.
“It was really nice,” Arnzen said. “It was really nice to know that there wasn’t a lot of drama this time.”
Arnzen’s second district championship provided a change of pace for the decorated golfer. She bounced back from an obscure penalty to capture the 2022 district crown. Arnzen also won last year’s state championship after rallying on the final hole.
But she faced no stomach-turning challenges Tuesday, blowing through the Boise Ranch course en route to her third victory in four major events this season. She’s finished under par in all three of those wins.
Arnzen put the icing on the cake with a birdie on the par-3 No. 12. She lofted a 9-iron uphill onto an out-of-sight green. After climbing the hill, she found it 3 inches from the hole, tapping it in for one of her five birdies on the day.
“She puts a lot of time in to be this good,” Timberline coach Todd Simpson said. “It doesn’t happen by accident. She works her tail off, and she’s done that since she was little.
“... Even when she shoots 68 today, she’s thinking about the shots she could have done better and wants to go work on it.”
Arnzen now turns her attention to defending her state crown next week at the Highland Golf Course in Pocatello. She played a round there two weeks ago, but plans to head over early next week to spend some more time studying its greens.
“(That) last goal is to win state, do the best I can and try to bring home a trophy,” Arnzen said.
Simpson said he’s seen the four-year captain continue to grow in her final season. In previous years, she often didn’t embrace the target on her back as one of the state’s top golfers. But this year, she’s worried less about those around her and focused on putting up low scores and letting the chips fall where they may.
“There’s some other girls that can give her a run,” Simpson said. “But if she plays her best, she’s definitely going to be pretty hard to beat.”
ROCKY MOUNTAIN 5-PEATS
The Grizzlies rolled to their fifth straight district championship Monday, shooting a combined score of 313 to top Mountain View by 20 strokes and bring home another trophy.
All five of Rocky Mountain’s golfers finished inside the top 11.
Natalie Nichenko led the way with her second-place finish at 77. Maggie Urian took third on a scorecard playoff after shooting a 78. Zoe Moore and Adel Peterson were part of a tie for fifth place at 79. And Ellianna Hoopes, whose round didn’t even count toward the Grizzlies’ team score, finished tied for 11th at 81.
The trophy adds to Rocky Mountain’s run of four straight state championships.
Mountain View (333), Boise (335) and Eagle (340) finished second, third and fourth, respectively, in the team standings to round out the Southern Idaho Conference’s state qualifiers.
6A District Three Tournament
Tuesday
At Boise Ranch
Par 71
GIRLS TEAM SCORES
1, Rocky Mountain 313
2, Mountain View 333
3, Boise 335
4, Eagle 340
5, Timberline 365
6, Borah 371
7, Owyhee 376
8, Capital 418
9, Kuna 517
GIRLS TOP 10 INDIVIDUALS
All to state
1, Ella Arnzen, Timberline, 68
2, Natalie Nichenko, Rocky Mountain, 77
3, Maggie Urian, Rocky Mountain, 78 (scorecard playoff)
4, Indie Taylor, Eagle, 78
t-5, Zoe Moore, Rocky Mountain, 79
t-5, Adel Peterson, Rocky Mountain, 79
t-5, Anna Li, Boise, 79
t-5, Kassidy Schneider, Eagle, 79
t-9, Haleigh Thompson, Meridian, 80
t-9, Alexandra Jensen, Centennial, 80
This story was originally published October 1, 2024 at 5:25 PM.
