LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – The Lansing Catholic girls golf team is the 6 Sports Team of the Week after bringing home the Div. 4 State Championship.

The Cougars won the title in impressive fashion, opening up a 17-stroke lead after the first day of the championship tournament. They only added to their lead on day two and won the state title by 26 strokes over second place Kalamazoo Christian.

After the team opened up its big lead in round one, head coach Kim Johnson said the message heading into round two was the same as its been all season.

“We really harp on just one shot at a time,” said Johnson. “So we just take one shot at a time and whatever happens, happens. The girls were extremely receptive to what we were asking them to do. It became that this is just part of what we do and so it made our job [as coaches] much easier.”

Each of the last three years, Lansing Catholic has finished in the top three but come up just short of winning the title. So for the Cougar upperclassmen who had been with the program through each heartbreaking finish, clearing the final hurdle and bringing home the state title was especially gratifying.

“It was very relieving,” said senior Sophie Hauser. “I felt like this weight had been lifted off my chest and I had had a chance to breathe actually. I felt so accomplished and felt that all of our hard work had finally paid off and it was just a great ending.”

Hauser had the highest individual score for the Cougars, posting a two-round total of 152, the third-best individual score in the state.

Hauser’s teammate, Tessa Roe, became the first female athlete in Lansing Catholic history to win a state championship in two different team sports (she also won a state title with the Cougar basketball team last year).