Morell tops North Platte field

Katherine Morell teeing of on the 17th hole of the North Platte Invite. Katherine wins the first place medal with a 71, 12 strokes better than the 2nd place medalist. (Wayne Nelson)

NORTH PLATTE -- McCook High School senior Katherine Morell cruised to first-place medalist honors Friday at the North Platte Invitational girls golf tournament.

Morell, who won the McCook Invitational with a 74 and was second in Thursday's Sidney Invitational with an 80, fired a 1-under-par 71 at the North Platte Country Club.

She won the title by 12 strokes over Lexington's Erin Ondrak and Scottsbluff's Britanny Pepler, who tied with 83s. Ondrak defeated Pepler in a playoff for second place.

Ironically, it was Pepler who edged out Morell by two strokes to place first at Sidney Thursday.

McCook's Justine Hager fired her second straight 95 and placed 10th.

Lesley Nelson shot a 101, Minda Haas 120 and Kristy Osterman 121.

The Bison girls golf team placed second with a 387 score. Scottsbluff won the team title with a 362 score.

Gering and Gothenburg shot 419, Ogallala 429, Lexington 431, North Platte 438 and Cozad 601.

Other medalists at the tournament were Ogallala's Teeyl Sutton 85, Ogallala's Lacy Theiler 86, Gothenburg's Katie Keiser 86, Scottsbluff's Mallory Warren 88, Gering's Lyndsey Eskam 90 and Scottsbluff's Roxanne Hastam 92.

Theiler defeated Keiser in a playoff for the fifth-place medal.

The Bison girls golf team plays at North Platte again next Thursday against North Platte and Cozad.

The meet starts at 4 p.m.

McCook competes at the Lexington Invitational at 9:30 a.m. Sept. 10.