| | Published November 2nd, 2016
| Acalanes and Miramonte Golf Teams Advance to NCS Championship
| | | By Karl Buscheck |  | | Photos Gint Federas |
Tim Scott - the head coach of the Acalanes girls golf team - remembers the exact moment when he broke the news to his team that they were headed to the Division I NCS Championship.
"You should have seen the smile and the twinkle in their eye when I told them at our practice that I had applied for an at-large berth and we received one," Scott said, recalling the scene at the team's practice on the Rossmoor Golf Course.
The Dons, who went 3-5 in league play, made it to NCS - hosted at Chardonnay Golf Club in Napa on Oct. 31 - thanks in part to their third-place finish at the DAL Tournament.
Senior Emily Attiyeh won the league championship at Delta View Golf Course in Pittsburg on Oct. 17, shooting an even-par 72.
"All the girls on our team totally understand how good Emily is and they love her dearly," Scott said. "And she's a great team captain."
Attiyeh was one of two Dons who would have qualified for the NCS tournament as an individual. The other was Avalon Schenone - the team's future star.
"I wouldn't be a bit surprised if she - being a (junior) next year - would be the leader of our team," Scott said. "We've got several good sophomore players who she's best friends with and she's just going to sort of take over Emily's role."
Miramonte also earned an at-large berth for the NCS postseason after placing second in the DAL Tournament. Senior Tori James tied for second place at Delta View, while sophomore Gracie Guidotti finished in a tie for ninth.
"We were delighted to receive an at-large berth in the NCS Division 1 Girls Golf Championship, although we were not surprised by it," co-coach Bob Riddell explained after the team went 6-2 in the DAL - good for second in the standings.
The senior tandem of James and Franny Caronna both earned first-team all-league honors, while junior Tiffany Shinn played her way onto the second team. Riddell also offered praise for the Mats group of young rising golfers.
"Guidotti joined the team late in the year, due to a volleyball injury, but contributed mightily down the stretch," Riddell said. "And finally, our strong freshman class was lead by Katie Ingrey, Kaydee Tu and Kate Nelson."
Campolindo placed fourth at the DAL Tournament and two team members - seniors Valerie Rockwell and Haleigh Goett - placed high enough in the field to advance to the Division II NCS Championship.
That tournament, which was played at Rooster Run Golf Course in Petaluma on Oct. 24, served as a individual qualifier for the Division I tournament the following week.
"They're both seniors and they're both second team DAL all-league selections based on how they did over the course of the season," head coach Gary O'Neill said of the duo, whose season ended at Rooster Run. "So, it was a very successful year from their perspective."
O'Neill also singled out senior Paris Thomas as one of the key contributors on a Cougars team that posted a 2-6 record in league action.
"One of our seniors this year that had a real breakthrough in terms of our scoring - matching her athletic ability - was Paris Thomas," O'Neill said. "She did very well in the DAL tournament and broke 100, which is not particularly easy under tournament conditions.
"She went out on a real high note."
While the seniors are graduating from the squad, the Campolindo team maintains an optimistic outlook for 2017 and beyond thanks to a influx of young talent this fall.
"More importantly we had five freshmen who joined our team this year and they had a significant amount of match experience, which will bode well for future years," O'Neill said.
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA