AURORA | George Miller’s level of concern began to register on the meter a bit in the early going of Monday’s Class 5A Northern Regional girls golf tournament, but he soon remember what kind of team he had.

The Regis Jesuit coach had nothing to worry about after a few shaky opening holes for his team, as the Raiders eventually ran away from the field on their way to a second straight regional title.

Three-fourths of the Regis Jesuit team that won the 5A state championship last season — senior Sydney Gillespie, sophomore Jaclyn Murray and junior Mary Weinstein — all posted top-five finishes and No. 4 Ali Timlin wasn’t far behind in seventh place as the Raiders secured an automatic berth in the 5A state tournament May 18-19 at The Olde Course in Loveland.

Miller’s team finished with a team score of plus-18 228 — same as it posted in winning the Central Regional in 2014 — for a 29-stroke cushion over Monarch.

Gillespie finished two strokes clear of Dakota Ridge star Gillian Vance to win her second straight individual regional championship with a round that didn’t start out ideally. Through just two holes, the Colorado Christian University signee found herself at 3-over-par, but she steadied herself with birdies on No. 4 and No. 7 to finish the front nine at just 1-over.

Regis Jesuit sophomore Jaclyn Murray, right, eyes her putt on Hole No. 16 during the Class 5A Northern Regional girls golf tournament on May 4, 2015, at Heather Ridge Golf Club. (Courtney Oakes/Aurora Sentinel)
Regis Jesuit sophomore Jaclyn Murray, right, eyes her putt on Hole No. 16 during the Class 5A Northern Regional girls golf tournament on May 4, 2015, at Heather Ridge Golf Club. (Courtney Oakes/Aurora Sentinel)

Five straight pars to open the back nine kept Gillespie at 1-over, while she lost just two strokes over the final four holes to finish plus-3.

Contrary to the rest of her teammates, Murray started out strong as she followed an opening bogey with six straight pars. A double bogey on the par 3 Hole No. 10 added two strokes to her score and she frustratingly couldn’t get a birdie putt to drop the rest of the way as she finished third overall.

A triple bogey on No. 1 helped push Weinstein’s score higher than she wanted, but she made par on 11 holes to finish with a 79. Weinstein played in a group with five players instead of four, which definitely threw off the pace of play.

Timlin, getting her first shot at regionals, birdied her first hole, but soon saw her score balloon with a double bogey followed by a triple. Admittedly up and down all season, Timlin had more good than bad managed to finish seventh overall with an 86.

The Raiders’ win gave Aurora two regional champions, as Grandview topped the Central Regional field at nearby CommonGround G.C.

The cut to make state landed at 103, but no player from the city’s other team teams in the field — Gateway, which played host to the meet on the behalf of the EMAC, and Aurora Central — managed to advance.

The Olys were paced by Hannah Espinoza’s 125, while Aurora Central’s top score came from Luisa Armas with a 143. Diamond Evans started the tournament for the Trojans, but was forced to abandon her round when the aftereffects of a recent surgery proved too much for her to continue.

Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor of the Aurora Sentinel. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel

The Regis Jesuit girls golf team, from left, Jaclyn Murray, Sydney Gillespie, Ali Timlin and Mary Weinstein, pose with the Class 5A Northern Regional plaque they won on May 4, 2015, at Heather Ridge Country Club. Gillespie took tournament medalist honors with a 3-over-par 73, while Murray was third, Weinstein fifth and Timlin seventh. The Raiders, the defending 5A state champions, earned an automatic berth to this 5A state tournament May 18-19. (Photo by Courtney Oakes/Aurora Sentinel)
The Regis Jesuit girls golf team, from left, Jaclyn Murray, Sydney Gillespie, Ali Timlin and Mary Weinstein, pose with the Class 5A Northern Regional plaque they won on May 4, 2015, at Heather Ridge Country Club. Gillespie took tournament medalist honors with a 3-over-par 73, while Murray was third, Weinstein fifth and Timlin seventh. The Raiders, the defending 5A state champions, earned an automatic berth to this 5A state tournament May 18-19. (Photo by Courtney Oakes/Aurora Sentinel)

2015 CLASS 5A NORTHERN REGIONAL GIRLS GOLF

Team scores (par 70, top two teams advance to 5A state tournament): 1. REGIS JESUIT 228; 2. Monarch 257; 3. Arapahoe 280; 4. Dakota Ridge 289; 5. Mountain Range 298; 6. Highlands Ranch 300; 7. Prairie View 307; 8. Coronado 313; 9. Chaparral 331; 10. Liberty 352; 11. Central (G.J.) 384; 12. Chatfield 399; 13. GATEWAY 405; 14. AURORA CENTRAL 489

Top 20 individuals (par 70, qualify for 5A state tournament): 1. SYDNEY GILLESPIE (REGIS JESUIT) 73; 2. Gillian Vance (Dakota Ridge) 75; 3. JACLYN MURRAY (REGIS JESUIT) 76; 4. Delaney Elliott (Monarch) 78; 5. MARY WEINSTEIN (REGIS JESUIT) 79; 6. Piper Koy (Arapahoe) 81; 7. ALI TIMLIN (REGIS JESUIT) 86; 8. Jenna Chun (Highlands Ranch) 87; 9. Carly Gallant (Monarch) 88; 10. Danielle Daly (Mountain Range) 89; 11. Emma Teuton (Monarch) 91; 12. Grace Wilson (Coronado) 94; 13. Remy Mullen (Monarch) 96; 14. Emma Kriske (Prairie View) 97; 15. Gabby Membel (Arapahoe) 98; T16. Danielle Miller (Chaparral) 99; T16. Madi Eurich (Coronado) 99; 18. Nikki Backman (Arapahoe) 101; 19. Haley Westing (Mountain Range) 102; T20. Beth Lebar (Arapahoe) 103; T20. MaClay Bruce (Prairie View) 103

Aurora team-by-team results (in order of finish)

Regis Jesuit (228): Sydney Gillespie 73, Jaclyn Murray 76, Mary Weinstein 79, Ali Timlin 86; Gateway: Hannah Espinoza 125, Sophia Spelic 133, Iva Griffiths 147, Shelby Zamora 158; Aurora Central: Luisa Armas 143, Savella Bernhardt 152, Iris Ayala Mercado 194, Diamond Evans DQ

Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor and photographer with Sentinel Colorado. A Denver East High School and University of Colorado alum. He came to the Sentinel in 2001 and since then has received a number...