Northville Nets 3rd-Straight Team Title, Griswold Rides Fast Start to Medalist Honor
By
Tom Lang
Special for MHSAA.com
October 17, 2026
BATTLE CREEK – For the Northville Mustangs, it seems like a case of rinse and repeat.
Northville won its third consecutive Lower Peninsula Division 1 girls golf championship this weekend at Bedford Valley. Three Mustangs tied for 11th place to lead the way – McKenzie Stevens, Naaz Gill and Cam Baker, all with two-day scores of 156.
This year’s team title was not the only repeat, however, as the same three golfers (plus a fourth who has since graduated) tied each other for eighth place in 2024 while leading Northville to the first of the three consecutive titles.
“We’re all usually within 2-to-3 stokes of each other,” said Gill, the lineup’s lone senior. “I think we all play the same game, and we like to help each other out. It’s funny, but it makes some sense.
“Our consistency and the stability that we have was what went right this weekend,” Gill added. “Even if we have one bad hole, we’re able to hold on and not blow up; just stay stable throughout. One bad hole doesn’t dictate our round.”
As for feeling extra pressure or instead using it as motivation to earn a third-straight title, Gill said: “It is a motivator, just to keep things going. And not just to win the title but for all of us to play our game that we like.”
Northville finished at 312-319-631 for an 18-shot margin over runner-up Macomb Dakota (330-319-649). Third was Portage Central (whose leader Olivia Griswold earned medalist) at 320-346-666 to place six strokes better than Okemos (337-335-672) in fourth. Rochester Adams (333-342-675) rounded out the top five.
Griswold blitzed the field in the opening round with a 5-under 67, making it very difficult to be caught. She added a 74 on day two for an overall 141 at 3-under par. Duo runners-up Saisha Patil of Okemos and Hannah Kim of Troy came in seven strokes back at 148 each. That pair were in fourth place to start the day.
“I wasn’t taking as many risks today (Saturday), just kind of staying patient, letting my game do what it does,” Griswold said shortly before being handed the medalist trophy. “I wasn’t worried about making mistakes. In the first round my putting was really good. I only had 29 putts. My wedges were also really tight, which helped me get so few putts. Overall, it was really solid. Didn’t make many mistakes.
“I’ve played here so many times. I was really, really happy that states was playing here (at Bedford Valley). We have lots of conference matches, and I’ve played some summer events here too.”
Regarding the team’s third-place showing, Griswold added: “We’ve been in sixth place the last couple of years, and that’s about where we were projected to be this year, so I’m so proud of everyone for staying in it and playing some of their best golf of the year, especially in the first round. We didn’t expect to be top three, so super proud of everyone.
“I’m happy with his win because starting with Regionals the last couple of years I haven’t done great, and haven’t been all that good at states,” Griswold said about a 21st-place finish last year and 19th in 2024. “So, I worked really, really hard this entire summer and changed a bunch of stuff with my swing. I had a lot of ups and downs this summer, but really felt at the peak of my game the last couple weeks. So, getting to perform well at Regionals and here at states was something I haven’t done well before, felt really good this time.”
Like any competitor, Kim wanted to seal a victory in her first Final as a freshman but knew Griswold’s huge first-round lead was insurmountable in most cases.
“My putting was a big improvement from yesterday,” Kim said. “It was the biggest factor that led me to score this good today (even-par 72). “Even if I had shot really good, it was going to be hard to catch her. I got a hole-in-one this year … so I’m happy. It’s not easy to play well here.”
(Photos by High School Sports Scene.)
Lutheran North Ace, Cranbrook Kingswood Complete Title Climbs
By
Scott DeCamp
Special for MHSAA.com
October 17, 2021
EAST LANSING – Lauren Timpf came up a little short of her lofty goals at last year’s Lower Peninsula Division 3 Girls Golf Final. The Macomb Lutheran North sophomore was not going to be denied this weekend at Michigan State University’s Forest Akers West.
Same went for the seasoned Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood team in its fourth-straight trip to the Finals.
Timpf wrapped up medalist honors, while Cranbrook Kingswood completed its team-championship mission on a chilly, windy Saturday.
After she fired an eye-popping 6-under 66 Friday, Timpf followed with a solid 1-over 73 Saturday in challenging conditions en route to a 14-shot victory over the rest of the field. Meanwhile, Cranbrook Kingswood collected its first Finals title since 2006 by shooting 694 for a six-stroke victory over runner-up Grosse Ile.
“I was hoping to go a little bit lower – that was my goal coming into today; really, to get it to double-digits under par was my goal,” said Timpf, who missed a playoff for medalist honors in last year’s Final by one shot when she bogeyed her final hole.
“It was tough conditions today, but I didn’t play my best. I let some shots get away, had a double out there. It was just a little bit tougher today.”
Whitehall’s Karli VanDuinen was runner-up at 153 (78-75), followed by Grosse Ile’s Lily Bargamian in third (154), Grand Rapids South Christian’s Ashley Thomasma fourth (160) and Freeland’s Averie Pumford fifth (162).
Cranbrook Kingswood’s Natasha Samsonov (sixth, 163), Bloomfield Hills Marian’s Ashley Carroll and Grand Rapids Catholic Central’s Ava Wisinski (tied for seventh, 165), Grand Rapids Christian’s Sara Muir (ninth, 167) and Ada Forest Hills Eastern’s Sophie Skoog (10th, 169) rounded out the top 10.
In the final team standings of the two-day tourney, South Christian placed third (708), while 2019 and 2020 champ Marian finished fourth (729). Grand Rapids Catholic Central took fifth (738).
“For my seniors that played today, this was their fourth state (finals tournament). They played in it as freshmen. … For them, they weren’t nervous,” said Cranes coach John Minnich, whose last three teams finished fifth, eighth and fourth at the Division 3 Finals. Three of the five players in this year’s lineup were seniors who were plenty familiar with playing at the championship level.
Cranbrook Kingswood also had finished Division 3 runner-up from 2012-14.
In addition to Samsonov, seniors Ashley Cong and Katherine Li shot 175 and 186, respectively, to help Cranbrook Kingswood. Sophomores Sienna Ilitch and Mackenzie Behnke posted 163 and 189, in that order.
Nobody was going to give Timpf a run for her money, but for Cranbrook Kingswood, there was strength in numbers. A tough schedule throughout the season, competing against the likes of eventual Division 1 champ Northville, perennial power Marian and Division 2 fourth-place Farmington Hills Mercy, had the Cranes prepared to win Division 3 this time.
“It was one of those things where I told them, ‘You know, you guys could probably have a pretty special team. Stay together, keep working at it, keep playing,’ and they did,” Minnich said. “They put in the time, they put in the work and, you know, it was a great season.
“The program is kind of on an up-tick. (Cranbrook) girls want to play, they’re excited about playing golf,” Minnich said.
Timpf has been playing golf since a young age.
And she’s quite familiar with the Forest Akers courses. In July, Timpf won the 43rd Michigan Girls’ Junior State Amateur Championship at Forest Akers East.
In the summer of 2020, Timpf gave eventual Michigan Women’s Amateur champion Anna Kramer a run before falling to her in the quarterfinals, 1-up, at Forest Akers West.
“(Last year’s Finals finish) did drive me because I knew that I could have won that tournament. I mean, I bogeyed the last hole to miss the playoff,” Timpf said. “And since we couldn’t take flagsticks out (last year), two my 3-footers hit the (stick) and bounced out.”
Everything about Timpf’s game was working Friday, and putts were dropping.
It was more of a challenge Saturday.
“I mean, yesterday I felt like I played great – everything was working together, putts were dropping,” Timpf said. “Today, not as many, but I did get away with a few. I missed a few 3-footers.”
PHOTOS Macomb Lutheran North’s Lauren Timpf follows a shot during Friday’s first round. (Middle) Cranbrook’s Natasha Samsonov tees off during first-day play. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)