MONTAGUE — Riding tremendous rounds from Braylyn Bultema and
Cadence Fox, the Montague Wildcats qualified for the Division 4 state
meet at Tuesday's regionals at Old Channel Trail Golf Course, finishing
in second place.
The Wildcats' team score was 386, finishing behind only NorthPointe Christian, which had a 367.
The state qualification was a tremendous first step for a young
group Kerr is excited to watch grow; Bultema is the only senior who
played Tuesday.
"This was our Super Bowl," Montague coach Phil Kerr said. "It’s been our
only focus the entire year, to get this program back to the state finals
where it belongs. Whatever comes next is gravy and will be a
satisfying reward for all their hard work. We wanted to give this young
team the opportunity to experience a state finals and build off of it
in the years ahead."
Montague's Braylyn Bultema watches the flight of an approach shot during Tuesday's regional tournament at Old Channel Trail Golf Course. Bultema had a career-best 86 to lead the Wildcats to a state-qualifying second-place finish.
Bultema carded a career-best 86 and
joined current Wayne State player Orianna Bylsma as the only players in
program history to lead a state-qualifying Montague team in scoring at a
regional (Bylsma did it three times, from 2019-21). Cadence Fox shot an
89, her third consecutive round going under 90 after having never
previously done it. Each of the two scored a birdie during their rounds.
"She is just an incredible
kid and deserves all of the flowers she will receive for this
performance," Kerr said of Bultema's round. "And Bray couldn’t have done it alone. Cadence was
unbelievable. She got off to a slow start and bounced back with a 41 on
her back nine."
Brynlee Kessler and Addi Smith both
contributed to the Wildcat score as well, shooting a 103 and a 106
respectively. Marguerite O'Connell shot a 122.
"I love this team and I couldn’t be more proud of
them," Kerr said.
