Plant City’s 2015 state championship story doesn’t look like last year’s: a feel-good tale of a team bonding together.
The 2015 story is Kendall Johnson’s to tell — and hers alone. Johnson, a senior, was the only Lady Raider to make the cut for this year’s FHSAA state championship tournament, held Tuesday, Nov. 3, and Wednesday, Nov. 4, at Mission Inn. The only thing as high as the stakes were the expectations surrounding her. But she had a plan.
“I would say, since I finished top 10 last year, I have a pretty good chance at getting a title,” she said before the tournament. “I’m looking forward to trying my hardest. The possibility of winning a title is exciting.”
BACK TO BACK
Lady Raider fans will remember last year’s fun-loving squad, most of which made the states cut with Johnson leading the way. Plant City had played well throughout the postseason, but it was Johnson’s star that shined the brightest: she was the individual winner at both districts and regionals in 2014.
“One of my favorite memories is last year at states, when the team had a guest house to ourselves,” Johnson said. “It was fun to have a bonding experience with them. Everybody came back this year, besides Lindsey Box, so we were a really close team.”
Johnson recorded a top-10 finish at states, despite having what she considered a poor first day. In the offseason, she honored an offer from Daytona State College and committed to play for the Lady Falcons in 2016.
In 2015, it was more of the same for her and her teammates. The Lady Raiders won every regular-season match in which they played, and Johnson averaged a 36. In the postseason, she once again led the way by winning both districts and regionals — this time shooting a 70 and a 71, respectively.
Before traveling to Howey-in-the-Hills for a Monday, Nov. 2, practice round, Johnson was confident in her ability to make some noise in the tournament.
GETTING THERE
The reason for her confidence, Johnson says, is because she spent the offseason focusing on her weaknesses.
Johnson said that, to avoid staying “on a plateau,” she spent her free time improving her short game and putting. She used the Aimpoint system to help herself gain a better understanding of how her putts would break on the green. She says it’s helped turn what would have been par or bogey putts in 2014 into birdies this year.
Although Johnson did win the 2015 district tournament with a 70, she says that she held a five-stroke lead on the field before “slipping up” on the last few holes. Coupled with the memory of last year’s first round at states, this was Johnson’s top priority after Plant City wrapped up regular-season play.
Johnson may not have been able to compete with her teammates, but was reassured knowing that head coach Meg Jordan believed in the senior’s abilities.
“I don’t want to get super stressed out or nervous, so I’m just looking at it as another tournament,” Johnson said before the tournament. “Whatever happens, happens.”
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.
UPDATE: Kendall Johnson finished the tournament tied for 13th overall, shooting a 151 over two days.
IN THE RECORD BOOKS
Plant City’s girls golf program has produced great players, and Kendall Johnson has placed herself at the top by joining recent standouts, such as Kellyanne Hurst and Kelsey Jensen.
Johnson, Jensen and head coach Meg Jordan also share a spot in the PCHS record books. All three women hold the record for the lowest round in school history, having shot a 34 in nine holes.
