Parkway North girls golf and tennis appeared at the state championships last week. For sophomore Frederique Sofia Weiss, it was a second time appearance at the tournament, which took place at Twin Hills Country Club in Joplin. Yvonne Shannon, who also competed in last year’s tournament, had an impressive final four appearance.

Shannon’s freshman season saw a strong quarterfinals finish, losing out to Ladue’s Megan Ouyang 2-1. Finishing top 8 as a freshman is impressive, especially considering Ouyang was a junior at the time. This year, Shannon fought all the way to the semi finals, securing a strong top 4 finish for North.

“This year, competing at the state tournament I felt a lot more relaxed,” Shannon said. “I wanted to walk in with as much confidence as possible because I intended to rank higher than I did last year, and I’d say I was able to accomplish my goal.”

For North, Shannon’s finish was the best result in 17 years. The semi finals appearance will add another trophy to the case for the school.

“I’d say my experience at the tournament went well,” Shannon said. “I think my favorite moment was being able to stand on one of the top five podiums during the award ceremony.”

North now has to look forward to the 2023 season, where Shannon hopes to continue improving and win the championship.

“Next year, I plan to rank even higher,” Shannon said.

Frederique Sofia Weiss’s first appearance at state saw a 33rd place finish, in a class of 85 competitors. Over the two 18 hole rounds, Weiss shot a 92 and 96 respectively, for a combined score of 188.

The tournament, which took place in Joplin, MO, was won by St. Joseph’s academy, a girls school located in Frontenac. This win extended the school’s championship record to seven years consecutively, with a dominant performance.

The conditions at the tournament were also a challenge to Weiss.

“The weather was very cold and windy,” varsity coach Jennifer Mueller said. “It made Frede have to change clubs a lot, [depending on] whether she was into the wind or not.”

Mueller spoke about the difficulty of coaching such a large team in an individual sport, “We had a very large team [17] with some that had never played before.  So teaching the fundamentals to some while perfecting the game of others was a challenge,” Mueller said. “We had to rotate groups at the golf course drive range, chipping area and putting green so that we don’t take over the whole thing.”

For both sports, making it to state was a rewarding experience, and they both look to bring even more competitors in the years to come.

“Although it was lonely, I was honored to represent my team and Parkway North,” Shannon said.