ROCHELLE MORRIS came away from the Yorkshire Ladies Championship as a bronze medalist after some terrific performances on her way to reaching the semi-finals at Pannal.
After coming through the qualifying 36-hole strokeplay rounds, along with her Huddersfield clubmates Megan Lockett and Melissa Wood, along with Bradley Park’s Georgia Wilson, Morris had two excellent victories over strong opponents before bowing out to the eventual winner Ellie Robinson from Wilton.
In the Strokeplay stage, Wilson had the best score with a total of 155, with Morris and Lockett both returning 156, Nicola Buxton 159 and Wood 160.
Sixteen-year-old Morris from Bradley, then knocked out last season’s Northern Girls champion Ellie Goodall 3 & 2 in the first round of the matchplay, and followed that up with a brilliant one hole victory over two-time winner Emma Brown in the quarter-finals.
As well as winning the title twice, England international Brown, from Malton and Norton has almost been runner-up nine times in the Yorkshire Championships and started off strongly to open up an early lead against Morris.
But the Huddersfield teenager dug deep to stay with Robinson reaching the last hole all square. But with extras holes looking likely, she then shocked her far more experienced opponent by holing out from 30ft on the 18th to win the contest one up.
That put her into the semi-final against Robinson, and the contest was nip and tuck until the 15th when the eventual champion took two holes in succession to run out a 3&1 winner.
It was an excellent performance from Morris, which added to her win in the recent Faldo Championship at Moortown has led to her call-up for Yorkshire’s Senior team for the up-coming Northern Counties Matches at Ganton next month.
Meanwhile, her Fixby clubmate Wood was defeated in the first round of the Matchplay, also losing to eventual winner Robinson two down, while 15-year-old Lockett reached the quarter-finals after beating Sara Garbutt 3 & 2.
Other first round losers included Wilson and Woodsome Hall’s Nicola Buxton (who has recently regained her amateur status).
Having already beaten Fixby’s Wood, Robinson continued her domination over the Huddersfield girls by ending Lockett’s run 3 & 2 in the quarter-finals.
Wood had the consolation of winning the best gross afternoon qualifying prize after shooting a round of 73, and both her and Lockett have also been rewarded for their progress by being named as Reserves for Yorkshire’s Senior team.
Next up for Morris is the Northern Counties event when Yorkshire will be up against Lancashire, Cheshire, Cumbria, Northumbria and Durham. Victory will see them contesting the National finals in Devon in September.
Morris will then be competing in the Yorkshire Junior Championship at Abbeydale at the end of June.
