MANCHESTER, Tenn. - Baylor golfer Emily Javadi had her Sweet 16 birthday party in February.
The Division II-AA girls state golf championship celebrated its Sweet 16 birthday on Wednesday at Willowbrook Golf Club with Javadi leading the celebration.
The Lady Raiders won their 16th straight state championship which ties the national record set by Phoenix Xavier Prep from 1980-95.
"When you say 16 years, it doesn't seem that long," said Javadi, who led Baylor with a 9-over-par 153. "But when you think that it's my entire life, that's a long time."
As senior Alyssa Brown said, "Our state championship can drive a car now."
The Lady Raiders combined to shoot 22-over 310 and beat Ensworth by three shots. Javadi's 153 tied her for third behind medalist Mary Virginia Portera of St. Agnes.
"I didn't play that well Tuesday," Javadi said. "And it wasn't much better today. But it was enough and I knew I could depend on my teammates."
Elena Baker, who placed fifth, had the second scores each day including an 81 on Wednesday despite having a sore shoulder which almost kept her out of the lineup. Coach Gary Partrick almost inserted freshman Blakesly Warren, the alternate, before Baker convinced her coach she could play 18 holes.
"It was pretty tense this morning," said Partrick, the third Baylor coach during the historic run.
Competition with Ensworth was close throughout the day. The teams were tied at the turn even though Baylor began the day with a three-shot lead. It was tied with three holes to go before Baylor went ahead by two with two holes to play. They closed it on 18 leaving Javadi with nothing but smiles as she signed her scorecard.
"This one was hard-fought," Partrick said. "Baylor set the bar for a long time, and Ensworth played really well and they know the bench-mark. They and other teams are closing the gap."
But nobody has closed it completely in 16 years of trying.
"It's a total school commitment to have something this competitive for this long," Partrick said. "It's a great honor when you tie any record, but a national one, that's big-time now.
"It's a huge testament to all the players who have been here before, Coach [King] Oehmig and [Ron] Cofer."
Contact David Uchiyama at duchiyama@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6484. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/UchSports.