Ames girls golfers on their 4A state team championship
The Ames girls golf team talks about winning the 2025 Class 4A girls state golf team championship at the Pleasant Valley course in Iowa City.
IOWA CITY — When it mattered most, the Ames girls delivered on the golf course.
The Little Cyclones earned their first girls state golf meet championship since winning back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010 after shooting a 633 over 36 holes on May 29-30 at the Pleasant Valley Golf Course.
After returning all its top golfers from last year’s sixth-place team, the Little Cyclones entered 2025 dead set on going for it all. They found themselves trailing Waukee Northwest by nine strokes after the first 18 holes on Day 1, but Day 2 was a different story.
Ames stepped it up in windy conditions on the second day, shooting a 315 to beat Northwest and outlast defending champion Pleasant Valley’s Day 2 score of 314. The Little Cyclones ended up winning by just one stroke over Northwest and Pleasant Valley, who each finished with 634 to give coach R.J. Voss his first state championship as head coach.
“We’ve been on this for a couple years,” said Ames senior Emersen Motl. “We’ve been working really hard for this, and I’m so happy that we did it this year all together. It truly was a team effort.”
The senior trio of Motl, Macy Button and Elizabeth Duncan all placed in the top 16 individually for the Little Cyclones.
Motl was the leader for Ames over the two days at state. She shot an 8 over 152 with a 77 on Day 1 and a 75 on Day 2.
Motl wrapped up the championship by shooting par on her final hole, sinking her putt to secure the title.
“Unbelievable finish,” Voss said. “Emersen coming in on the last hole and getting up and down out of the trap to win it is epic.”
Button was the breakout star for Ames this season. Fresh off earning her pilot’s license in the offseason, Button was right up with Motl and Duncan throughout the campaign, leading Ames individually on more than one occasion.
She stepped up her game at state by shooting a 10-over-par round of 154 to place 11th. She shot an 80 on Day 1 and then shot just 2 over on Day 2, shaving six strokes off her opening day round.
“That’s our secret weapon,” Duncan said. “We could not have done it without this girl.”
Duncan ended up ninth. She carded a 13-over score of 157 after shooting an 80 on Day 1 and 77 on Day 2.
Jessie Lohman was the all-important fourth scorer for Ames. She had an 81 on Day 1 and an 89 on Day 2 to place 33rd with a 170.
The team’s fourth senior, Estelle Wong, placed 45th with a 176 after carding an 87 on Day 1 and an 89 on Day 2.
In the sixth spot in the lineup, the Little Cyclones used two different golfers. Zoey Johnson shot a 96 on Day 1 and Avery Voss moved to sixth spot on Day 2, scoring a 114
“We talked about being able to keep it within single digits after Day 1,” R.J. Voss said. “Our girls were ready to go. I knew it was going to be windy today, so I knew it was going to be tougher, and the scores were going to get up. They just went out and responded. It’s so hard to get to this level and the state championship. It is a day I’ll never forget.”
Linn-Mar’s Morgan Rupp won her third individual state title after shooting a 3-under 141. Iowa City West’s Ainsley Wilson was runner-up with a 142.
Final 4A team scores (36 holes): 1. Ames 318-315-633, 2. Waukee Northwest 309-325-634, 3. Pleasant Valley 320-314-634, 4. Cedar Rapids Washington 331-336-667, 5. (tie) Western Dubuque 333-341-674, Cedar Falls 347-327-674, 7. Norwalk 330-345-675, 8. Bettendorf 337-349-686, 9. Indianola 347-346-693, 10. Iowa City West 350-347-697.
Top 10 individual scores (Par 144 — 36 holes): 1. Morgan Rupp (Linn-Mar) 69-72-141, 2. Ainsley Wilson (Iowa City West) 68-74-142, 3. Natalie Henson (Marshalltown) 74-71-145, 4. Camille Wood (Pleasant Valley) 71-75-146, 5. Kylie Watchl (Cedar Rapids Prairie) 71-75-146, 6. Adalyn Wiig (Waukee Northwest) 72-74-146, 7. Saleah Vivanh Vong (Des Moines East/North) 74-75-149, 8. Jane Petersen (Cedar Rapids Washington) 73-77-150, 9. Emersen Motl (Ames) 77-75-152, 10. Rylee Brockhouse (Muscatine) 77-76-153.
Joe Randleman covers high school sports for the Ames Tribune. Contact him at jrandleman@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JoeRandleman
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