AURORA | The Class 5A girls state golf tournament went on without Alissa Rhee Monday.
The Cherokee Trail senior — an alternate who was a late addition to the 84-golfer field last week — was scratched from her 9:09 a.m. tee time at Aurora Hills Golf Course due to a previous obligation delivering a speech at her school’s International Baccalaureate Stoll Ceremony in the early afternoon. Rhee, who is going to attend Brown University in the fall, is in the top seven in her graduating class.
It was a decision filled with “tears and doubt” according to Rhee’s mother, Ann, who thought her daughter would have been preoccupied with the time of her round if she had teed off as scheduled — even given it was an hour earlier thanks to an accomodation by the Colorado High School Activities Association.
Aurora Central athletic director Nate Smith, who is running the tournament, said Rhee was scratched by her coach via email on Friday, but the change wasn’t communicated to CHSAA officials, who were trying to find out what happened when her scheduled tee time arrived.
Heritage’s Erica Truong, the second alternate out of the Metro East Regional behind Rhee, was on hand at the tournament and was allowed to join the scheduled group of Chatfield’s Shannon Lubar and Castle View’s Sara Swaney.
Rhee’s name was still on the leaderboard at Aurora Hills.
After overcoming some challenges with her health in 2009, Rhee played in the 2010 5A state tournament at CommonGround Golf Course, finishing 77th.
Six Aurora players remain in the field: Overland senior Seung Ha Choi (the defending state champion, who teed off Monday in bright green pants) and Soleil Worthy, Rangeview sophomores Danae Bushman and Julia Kim — the first qualifiers in school history — Eaglecrest junior Jamie Griffin, making her third state tournament, and Gateway freshman Malorie Williamson.
Reach Sports Editor Courtney Oakes at sports@aurorasentinel.com or 303-750-7555