Roughriders Girls Golf open season with second place finish
The Southern McLean Roughriders girls golf team opened its 2026 season with a strong showing Monday, Aug. 17, earning a runner-up team fi nish at the Storm Invitational at Louse Creek Country Club in Flasher.
Southern McLean fi nished the day with a team score of 445, placing second behind tournament champion Western Morton. The Holsteins posted a 411 to take the team title, finishing 34 strokes ahead of the Roughriders.
Bowman County and Center-Stanton also competed at the season-opening meet but did not post complete team scores.
For Southern McLean, the opening tournament provided an early look at a young group that featured fi ve freshmen among its seven golfers. Despite that youth, several Roughriders placed among the top half of the 19-player field.
Freshman Olivia Schmidt led the way for Southern McLean with one of the best rounds of the tournament. Schmidt carded a 97, finishing 27-over par and earning third place individually.
Her top-three performance gave the Roughriders a strong score at the front of their lineup and set the pace for a team that placed three golfers inside the tournament’s top 10.
Fellow freshman Ellie Ronderos was Southern McLean’s second fi nisher, shooting a 110 to claim eighth place. Ronderos fi nished 40-over par in her fi rst competition of the season.
Right behind her was another freshman, Ava Schmidt, who fi nished ninth overall after shooting a 112. Her round placed her 42-over par and gave Southern McLean back-to-back fi nishers in eighth and ninth place.