Raegan Saldana finishes eighth at Nevada 3A state golf

ELKO — One year and 45 strokes later, Raegan Saldana has gone from simply reaching the Class 3A state golf tournament to finishing among its top eight players.

The Pahrump Valley sophomore shot rounds of 89 and 101 for a two-day total of 190 at Ruby View Golf Course in Elko, placing eighth among 33 players. As a freshman, she finished 30th with a 235.

Her climb began under distinctly wintry conditions. Snow was falling as Saldana stepped onto the first tee Oct. 13, but she responded with one of the best rounds of her season. Her opening 89 left her tied for sixth entering the final day.

The final round proved more difficult, but it could not obscure how far Saldana had traveled in one year.

“Her score today does not reflect her huge growth this season,” Pahrump Valley coach Sierra McKillips said after the final round. “We are super proud of her and the incredible skill she has shown this season.”

The two days in Elko offered sharply different sides of tournament golf.

Saldana’s opening 89 put her within striking distance of the leaders and gave her a share of sixth place. It came in conditions that included bitter cold and snow falling at the first tee.

The second round was more demanding. Her 101 dropped her two positions, but she remained firmly inside the top 10 against the best Class 3A golfers in the state.

“Golf is one of those sports where you can shoot your best-ever score one day and have a hard and humbling round the next,” McKillips said.

Saldana was also one of the younger players in her groups. She competed alongside two seniors during the opening round, then played with two seniors and a junior on the final day.

The sophomore had already shown she could handle postseason pressure during the Class 3A Southern Region tournament at Aliante Golf Club in Las Vegas.

Saldana shot rounds of 89 and a season-best 85 at regionals, finishing with a 174 and placing fifth to secure an individual berth at state. That performance followed a regular season in which she averaged 23.25 strokes over par and consistently placed herself among the region’s leading individual qualifiers.

McKillips credited much of that improvement to Saldana’s preparation before stepping onto the course.

Saldana worked on planning how she would approach each course before competition, reducing the number of decisions she had to make during a round. That allowed her to concentrate more on executing shots and maintaining the right mindset.

The approach also helped her recover when a hole did not go as planned.

McKillips said earlier in the season that Saldana had learned how to “shake off the bad holes,” an ability that becomes particularly important during an 18-hole postseason round.

That progress was evident even after the difficult second day in Elko. Instead of allowing the 101 to define the tournament, Saldana left with a top-eight finish and measurable evidence of her development.

“It’s super exciting to see her growth from last year to this year,” McKillips said.

The final standings provided the clearest measure: from 30th as a freshman to eighth as a sophomore, and from a two-day score of 235 to 190.

The tournament also gave Saldana experience against older players and another look at the demands of state competition. With two high school seasons still ahead of her, she now has both a strong result to build upon and a firsthand understanding of how quickly conditions and scores can change from one round to the next.

Her coach believes the strongest part of Saldana’s game is the confidence that comes when she trusts her own decisions.

“She knows she can play well,” McKillips said earlier this season. “As long as she trusts her judgment, she will be successful.”

At Ruby View, Saldana showed what that confidence can produce: a top-eight state finish, a 45-stroke improvement and a 22-place climb in the span of one year.

Reach sports reporter Bill Evans at wevans@pvtimes.com