Justin St. Ours | Daily Press Escanaba’s Cierra Scott putts on the hole 8 green of Sage Run during the MHSAA Division 1 Girls Golf tournament Thursday in Harris.

enominee senior Josie Hofer overcame a slow start and earned medalist honors in the Upper Peninsula Division 1 girls’ title at Sage Run Golf Club here Thursday.

Hofer completed the 18-hole course with 81 strokes, three better than Negaunee sophomore Rachel Niskanen on this partly sunny and warm day.

“I started off with an eight and six on the front nine,” said Hofer, who will be playing at Wisconsin-Oshkosh next season. “I just needed to get the ball on the green. My chipping hadn’t been that good, although it went pretty well today. My driver was a little off, but it’s different every day.”

The Maroons retained their title at 373, followed by Westwood 424 and Marquette 436.

“We have five real good athletes,” said Menominee coach Tony Hofer. “They had to figure out the short game at first. Although when you play every day for a month, you get better. The girls were a little worried going into this course, but they made the course very playable for the kids. This is a very nice course.”

Josie Hofer shot 42 on the front nine, followed by 39 on the back.

“That was my best nine-hole score for an 18-hole tournament,” said Hofer, who fired a personal-best 38 in an early-season nine-hole tourney at Riverside Country Club in Menominee. “I’ll probably do some weight training this summer and work on my game. I really need to work on my short game. We won every GNC tournament this year, and our No. 2 and 3 golfers played real well.”

Niskanen, two-time defending Marquette County Junior Golf Association champion, carded an 84, including 38 on the back nine Thursday.

“I think my short game was probably a little better on the back nine,” said Niskanen, who birdied on No. 15 and 16. “The front nine may have been a little more challenging, although we weren’t warmed up yet. Once I started to par some holes, I became more confident. There were a lot of hills out there, and I got a little tired going up the hills. It was a nice course, though. I’m happy with my score. I’ve been working on my game a lot. Everything is going okay, but there’s room for improvement all the way around.”

Menominee junior Maddy Derusha placed third with 86, followed by senior teammate Jenna Nolde at 97.

“I just played it safe everywhere,” said Derusha. “I had to stay focused and not worry about other scores. My short game went real well, and my driver was pretty good, too. I think this is even a little better than winning two years ago. I’m happy for the seniors. It was nice to send them off with a U.P. Championship.”

Nolde, a UW-Oshkosh tennis recruit, said her game wasn’t quite as good as usual but was happy to place fourth.

“I had a couple rough holes,” she added. “It was a tough course. The fairways were long. Although, my drives and putting were pretty good. It feels really good to win as a team and end my careers as U.P. champions.”

Marquette’s Morgan Rhodes and Houghton’s Keegan Leonard tied for fifth with 98.

“Morgan had a nice tournament, and (junior) Zoe Smith had her best score all year (102),” said Marquette coach Ben Smith. “Ruth Hummell had a pretty awesome start. She birdied the first two holes, and our girls did pretty well overall.”

Escanaba sophomore Cierra Scott was the top area finisher in seventh at 99.

“I think my drives went well, and putting went pretty well,” she said. “We played in a lot of cold tournaments this year. It was nice to play on a warm day. My hybrid game was a little rough, although the rough was pretty thick. I just have to get used to that. I have a lot of improving to do, but I’m excited. I’ve been playing a lot with Josie and Morgan and learned a lot from them.”

Esky’s Abby Hill took 15th (115), and Macy Green was Manistique’s leader in 25th (122).

“I wasn’t sure how the girls would handle our toughest venue all year, but they did well,” said Esky coach Brian Robinette. “You’ve got to have the physical ability to walk the course, and the girls handed it well. I’m tremendously proud of them. Cierra is starting to get into a comfort zone. She has a real good attitude and kind of the positive ring leader on the team. Ninety-nine is a fine score out here.

“Our average age is 15. The future is bright for them. With youth comes a learning curve, and they always figured out how to balance everything and were there for every practice. This is a very enthusiastic group of girls which made a real strong commitment to improving their game.”

U.P. Division 1 Girls’ Finals

At Sage Golf Club, Harris Township

Top five — 1, Josie Hofer, Menominee, 81; 2, Rachel Niskanen, Negaunee, 84; 3, Maddy Derusha, Menominee, 86; 4, Jenna Nolde, Menominee, 97; 5, Morgan Rhodes, Marquette and Keegan Leonard, Houghton, 98 (tie).

Team results

Menominee (373) — Josie Hofer 81, Maddy Derusha 86, Jenna Nolde 97, Erin Barrette 109.

Westwood (424) — Jillian Koski 101, Laci Moffatt 103, Renee Blanck 108, Heidi Meglathery 112.

Marquette (436) — Morgan Rhodes 98, Zoe Smith 102, Ruth Hummell 117, Abby Luke 119.

Houghton (454) — Keegan Leonard 98, Marissa Hird 116, Michaela Geburkuff 118, Mary Ellen Trewhella 122.

Escanaba (456) — Cierra Scott 99, Abby Hill 115, Peyton Wellman 119, Annika Wangrud 123.

Negaunee (509) — Rachel Niskanen 84, Josie Smith 133, Ava Gustitis 144, Lexi Mason 148.

Manistique (521) — Macy Green 122, Nora Cunningham 124, Maddy Maline 128, Jenna Jack 147.

Kingsford (NTS) — Maggie Menghini 119, Amanda Yu 129, Lily Wilcox 138.

Sault Ste. Marie (NTS) — Lilly Alaspa 105, Elizabeth Ohman 126.