The Thompson Invitational
Oro valley CC: Sept. 26-27
Ironwood Ridge junior standout Raina Ports shot a birdie on the second playoff hole (par-4 9) at the Oro Valley Country Club to win The Thompson Invitational on Sunday afternoon. Ports, Zoe Newell (Ironwood Ridge) and Raegan Capizzi (Chaparral) finished with a 7-over-par 151 after two days of competition.
Only a freshman, Capizzi led the field after the first round on Saturday with a 1-over 73. Ports was one shot back heading into Sunday and Newell was three shots off the pace along with three other golfers.
Newell flipped the script and came in with a strong round on Sunday and she took advantage to force the three-way tie with ab birdie on the 18th. As mentioned before, Ports pulled out the win on the second playoff hole.
The golfers were all playing unattached but Ironwood Ridge won the Division II state championship last year with Ports, her sister Hannah Ports, Newell, Celia Schrecker and Makenna Brown bringing home the honors. Also playing as individuals, the Ironwood Ridge program finished in third place at the National High School Championships played in Pinehurst, North Carolina in early August.
On the boy’s side, Salpointe’s Max Krueger shot an even 144 (73-71) to tie for third place. Hamilton’s Vincent Cervantes shot a 2-under 142 (73-69) to capture the title.
Michael Thompson helped pace Rincon to the 2002 state championship. He then played for Tulane and Alabama. In 2008, Thompson was named the SEC Player of the Year and he won his first PGA TOUR event at the Honda Classic in 2013. His second title came at the 3M Open in 2020.
LINK: COMPLETE RESULTS
GIRLS CHAMPIONSHIP
1 Raina Ports Oro Valley 74-77 151 +7
T2 Zoe Newell Oro Valley 77-74 151 +7
T2 Raegan Capizzi Scottsdale 73-78 151 +7
4 Marley Moncada Tucson 76-77 153 +9
5 Julie Huggins Anthem 76-79 155 +11
BOYS CHAMPIONSHIP
1 Vincent Cervantes Chandler 73-69 142 -2
2 Camden Braidech Scottsdale 71-72 143 -1
T3 Max Krueger Tucson 73-71 144 E
T3 Trevor Lewis Prescott 71-73 144 E
T3 Trevor Grenier Gilbert 71-73 144 E
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Andy Morales was recognized by the AIA as the top high school reporter in 2014, he was awarded the Ray McNally Award in 2017, a 2019 AZ Education News award winner and he has been a youth, high school and college coach for over 30 years. He was the first in Arizona to write about high school beach volleyball and high school girls wrestling. His own children have won multiple state high school championships and were named to all-state teams. Competing in hockey, basketball, baseball and track & field in high school, his unique perspective can only be found here and on AZPreps365.com. Andy is the Southern Arizona voting member of the Ed Doherty Award, recognizing the top football player in Arizona, and he was named a Local Hero by the Tucson Weekly for 2016. Andy was named an Honorary Flowing Wells Caballero in 2019 and he was a member of the Amphi COVID-19 Blue Ribbon Committee and was given the Amphi Distinguished Service Award. Contact Andy Morales at amoralesmytucson@yahoo.com
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