By Andy Walter

TOWNSEND — Doug Grove was in a tough spot on Wednesday afternoon.

The good news for the Sussex Academy golf coach was that two of his players were in a playoff to decide the DIAA girls’ state ttle.

The bad news was that one of them had to lose.

“It’s amazing, you feel happy and sad at the same time,” said Grove. “Neither of them deserved to lose.”

But with senior Hannah Lydic out-dueling freshman teammate Sawyer Brockstedt for the girls’ crown and Sussex Academy winning the overall team championship, there were plenty of smiles to go around among the Seahawks.

With its three standout female players leading the way, Sussex Academy finished with a two-over par team score of 506, six shots better than second-place Tatnall in the two-day event played at Odessa National Golf Course.

It was the first DIAA state championship in any sport for Sussex Academy, the Georgetown school that had its first graduating class in 2017.

“There were two goals going into the tournament,” said Lydic. “Individual champion and team champion. And the fact that I knew that we’d won when I finished by 18 holes, I set that aside and was able to be like, ‘Alright, on to goal two.’

“It means the world,” she said about capturing the team state championship. “It’s like we’re growing the game. It’s really cool and it’s great to be a part of this history.”

Lydic and Brockstedt ended up tied with 36-hole, three-under-par totals of 141. They both parred the playoff hole — No. 18 — the first time with Lydic carding another par with Brockstedt taking a bogey the second time through.

Lydic said it was fun going up against a teammate in that situation. Last spring, she went to a playoff with her younger sister, Sarah, to decide the Henlopen Conference title,

“It’s a dogfight — that’s a good thing,” said Lydic. “You want to be in those positions. It’s fun and then it’s a great learning experience as well.”

Brockstedt fired a second-round 68 on Wednesday to earn her spot in the playoff. The only lower round in the tournament was the 66 that boys’ individual champion, Matt Homer, of Tatnall put up.

“It was really nerve-wracking but I was just happy to be there,” said Brockstedt, whose father. Chase, is a Dover High grad. “I love playing against Hannah. I’m just so happy we could make it this far as a team. Even though I didn’t win the playoff, it was such a good experience.

“I played really well today. It was good to start making some putts.”

The Seahawks’ third-best score came from Sarah Lydic, who shot a 72 on Wednesday to finish in fourth place with a 143. She was the overall individual state champion last year — the last in a string of five straight female players to win the championship.

Grove said freshman Dominic Piperno deserves credit for shooting an 81 on Tuesday to help give the Seahawks the five-shot lead they took into the second round.

On a squad made up almost entirely of sophomores and freshmen, Grove said that Hannah Lydic — the lone senior — really is the leader.

“Hannah is amazing in every respect,” said Grove. “She’s the mature one, the leader, she’s the motivator.

“I’m just really happy for them. The three girls have been dominant all year long and they did it again today.”

Chip shots

Tatnall’s Homer won the boys’ title with a six-under-par total of 138, five shots better than second-place Evan Barbin of Red Lion Chrsitian (143). ... Caesar Rodney’s Evan Gebhart (153), who placed seventh, was the top-finishing Henlopen Conference boys’ player. ... The state coaches named an All-State team based on individuals’ regular-season averages. Sarah Lydic had the best scoring average among female players. Also making first-team All-State from the Henlopen Conference were Hannah Lydic, Brockstedt, CR’s Reagan Garnsey and Polytech’s Kylie Yiengst.

Sports editor Andy Walter can be reached at 741-8227 or walter@newszap.com.
Follow on Twitter at @DSNSports.