Williamsburg’s Morgan Owens-Lewis qualifies for state golf tournament

Williamsburg sophomore Morgan Owens-Lewis has qualified to compete in this year’s KHSAA golf state championship tournament, taking place next Tuesday and Wednesday at the Bowling Green Country Club.

Owens-Lewis shot a 79 at the region championship meet, held this past Monday at the Burnside Island State Park golf course. That was good enough to qualify her for state, making her the only coverage area golfer that will be making the trip next week.

This is Owens-Lewis’ first time competing on the state championship stage, although she did appear in the All “A” state championship tournament earlier this month at the Woodson Bend golf course in Somerset.

Owens-Lewis’ coach and grandfather, Mike Owens, said, “It has been a lot of hard work on her part, for sure. She has had lessons from a professional golfer, and has played in a lot of summer tournaments. Unlike some, she has played in a school tournament every Saturday this season, and in past seasons as well. You’re not required to do that, but she has.”

“She has really progressed this year,” Owens continued. “And at region everything was just going right for her. 79 is a good score, but she felt like she should have done better. I have felt so proud to watch her progression, not just this year, but as the years have gone on. This year things have really come together, though.”

When asked about the excitement of getting to go to state, Owens said, “She was elated knowing that she had accomplished a score good enough to qualify for the state tournament. She has watched others compete at that level, and for her to get to compete there herself is just an unreal experience. I know there will probably be some nerves, but this year it seems like she has handled that better than ever before.”

As for her own personal thoughts on going to state, Owens-Lewis said, “The idea of competing in the state tournament is pretty nerve wracking. I’ve been playing golf for seven years in hopes of finally getting here, and now that I have it’s pretty surreal. I just hope to make my family and my school proud out there. As for my expectations, I just hope to go out there and give it my all. Golf is a sport where many factors can affect how you play, so you can’t really predict the outcome of my round.”

When asked how it felt when she knew she had qualified for the state tourney, Owens-Lewis said, “The final moments leading up to the awards ceremony were the most exciting, stressful moments of my life so far. I was surrounded by my friends and family, calculating every score on the scoreboard, just waiting for the final scores to come in. When my name was announced, I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed with this pride that I’ve never felt before.”

In the above picture, Owens-Lewis stands with regional director James Powell after her state championship qualifying performance. For more information on this year’s KHSAA state golf tournaments, go to KHSAA.org.

The News Journal will provide more details on Owens-Lewis’ trip to state as that information becomes available.