Wheeler's Sakura Downing stages remarkable finish to capture her first ECC girls' golf championship

Thompson — Sakura Downing's hands trembled as she lined up a short pressure-packed putt on the ninth green on Wednesday at Quinnatisset Country Club. Sink it and Downing would win medalist honors competing in her first Eastern Connecticut Conference girls' golf championship tournament. The Wheeler High School freshman drained the putt to earn the individual title by one stroke. She fired a 2-over 38 in the nine-hole match to nip defending champion Caroline Goderre of Norwich Free Academy, Woodstock Academy's Reagan Scheck and Killingly's Kendra St. Marie, who all tied for second at 39. "It felt surreal," Downing said. "It didn't really feel like it actually happened. It felt like a dream almost. I just couldn't believe it. My hands were trembling on the last hole when I realized that I could potentially win this. It was just a one-footer but I got super nervous. A lot of people were behind the green just watching." What made Downing's achievement even more remarkable was that she needed to birdie the last two holes to pull it off. Her late charge came on the heels of a double-bogey on the seventh hole that put her behind by one stroke. Downing figured a strong finish was doable, especially after her drive on the par 4 8th hole nearly reached the green. "I felt like I could do it if I got lucky enough," Downing said. "But also I was just happy to be here. I just wanted to do the best that I could. Even if I didn't get the two birdies, I still would have had a great round. So, just knowing that let me feel a little bit better." Downing finished off the 8th by nearly chipping in for an eagle and then taping in for a birdie, giving her a shot of confidence for the final hole. Heading to the final hole, Downing asked coach Carl Weber if there would be a playoff if she finished in a tie for first. "Not if you birdie this hole," Weber said to her. And Downing did just that. Downing accomplished the feat while playing in a record field of 45 golfers at the event. She finished with three birdies overall. "To win a tournament, a freshman, 14 years old, I'm so proud of her," Weber said. "She works so hard all the time. She's always practicing and always playing. With no girls' team at Wheeler, Downing competes on the boys' squad. Consistency is a trademark of Downing's game. "She is extremely consistent with her drive and her irons," Weber said. "Today, she hit every fairway with her driver and she hit seven out of nine greens." NFA defended its team title, finishing with an ECC tournament record 173 strokes. Woodstock (188), Killingly (193), East Lyme (199) and Stonington (203) rounded out the top five. Quinebaug Valley (227) and Bacon Academy (242) completed the seven-team field. The Wildcats have won three of the last four ECC girls' championships. They finished undefeated against conference competition during the regular season. Goderre, the ECC Golfer of the Year, led the way while seniors Erin O'Farrell, who placed fifth with a 40, Katelyn Jakubowski (46) and Rianna Cavanna (48) all shot personal bests in their final career match. Sophomore Addison Cuff is the fifth member of the team. "They played incredibly," said NFA's Jessica Chapman, who was named the ECC Coach of the Year. Chapman gave credit to Downing for her impressive play down the stretch. "That's pressure," Chapman said. "She knew she was down a couple and she birdied and birdied. Hats off to her. She did a fabulous job. "My heart breaks for Caroline, of course, because she works so hard and she wants it so much. … But, five or six girls could have easily won today, and that's a great thing for women's golf. And a record field and a record-low for my team." Goderre, a junior, will return next season. But Chapman will miss her departing seniors. "It's hard for me because I've been with them the whole time," Chapman said. "And I'm going to lose all of them and I'm very, very close to all of them. I'm really happy that they came out with their heads held high and came out with their personal bests. … I'm personally just so, so proud that they get to leave like that." In other individual results, Fitch's Lili Gagne placed sixth with a 42 and Stonington's Adilyn Risley and Quinebaug Valley's Sadie Murray tied for seventh at 44. g.keefe@theday.com