Girls

SUNNYSIDE — Ephrata freshman Sophie Molitor shot a season-best 87 at Black Rock Creek Golf Course in Sunnyside on Tuesday to win the WIAA 2A District 5 Championship.

Molitor’s individual medalist honors helped lead the Lady Tigers to their third straight district team title — all five teammates finished in the top 10 and qualified for the state WIAA 2A Golf Championship Tournament.

Shooting 41 on the front nine, Molitor added a birdie on the 12th hole and went on to edge runner-up Elaine Mower of Selah by one stroke.

They were followed by two Tiger seniors. Stella Bayley took third, shooting 90 with a birdie on the eighth hole and qualifying for state for the fourth straight year, while Rayn Castillo carded a 94 for fourth place. Junior Alyee Roberts shot 97 for seventh and senior Ceci Roth tied for 10th at 100 to round out the Ephrata squad.

The Lady Tigers' team total of 368 finished well ahead of runner-up Selah. Othello, Ellensburg and East Valley Yakima completed the field.

Molitor’s 87 was two strokes better than her previous season low. She entered district play at Ephrata’s No. 3 seed behind Bayley and Castillo after finishing 10^th in CWAC regular-season standings with a 95.2 stroke average.

As seniors, Bayley and Castillo both showed their continued progress on the links since their freshman seasons competing at district. In 2023 at Black Rock Creek, Bayley shot 105 while Castillo was two strokes back at 107.

Boys 

A day earlier on Monday, the Ephrata boys hosted the 2A District 5 Championship at Lakeview Golf and Country Club and came one shot shy of the team title, finishing 332 to Grandview's 331.

Three Tigers - junior Caiden Weber and seniors Cody Ogle and Caleb Moberg - qualified for state.

Weber, a returning state qualifier, led Ephrata with an 81 (+9) to tie for sixth place. He shot a 42 on the front nine, including a birdie on the second hole, and finished strong on the back side with a 39.

Moberg, also a state returner, and Ogle both shot 83 to tie for ninth. Ogle helped himself with four birdies, including back-to-back on the sixth and seventh.

Tiger senior Brady Hendrick came oh-so-close to joining his teammates at state. He shot an 85 to finish in a three-way tie with Ellensburg’s Brody Kercher and Bodee Crites for the final state qualifying berth. Under WIAA tiebreaker rules, the three went to a sudden-death playoff hole with the low score advancing. Kercher won the hole and qualified as a state alternate, Hendrick and Crites were eliminated.

Juniors Jett Julian and Rogan Homer, who both shot 94; senior Andrew Jacobsen was one stroke back at 95, freshman Noah Castillo tallied a 97, and sophomore Connor Roth finished with a 99.

Grandview freshman Easton Stokes took medalist honors with a two-over 74. East Valley/Yakima's Ayden Kline finished second at 76 and Grandview junior Grady Braman placed third at 77. 

The WIAA 2A state golf tournaments run Tuesday and Wednesday, May 19-20.

Molitor, Bayley, Castillo, Roberts, and Roth will be traveling to Riverside Golf Club in Chehalis for the girls tourney; Tiger boys Weber, Moberg and Ogle head to Tumwater Valley Golf Club.