BELLINGHAM — Tuesday it was her iron shots. Wednesday it was her short game.

Whatever the reason on whichever day, it just wasn’t happening for Seo Hee Moon at the class 4A state girls golf tournament.

Moon struggled for the second straight day, yet still managed to finish tied for second and help the undermanned Kamiak Knights bring home a third-place team trophy from Sudden Valley Golf and Country Club.

Moon, the defending state champion, carded a six-over-par 78 to finish with a two-day total of 155. The sophomore was a distant 13 strokes behind the winner, Sadena Parks of Bethel.

“It feels pretty good,” Moon said about earning a medal, even though it wasn’t the one she was seeking. “I wasn’t sure if I’d place or not today, since I didn’t do very well.

“I’m not that upset by that,” Moon added. “(Second) place is still good. It would have been nice if I’d topped the other two girls, too, but then that can’t happen all the time.”

Moon began the day seven shots off the pace after shooting a 77 in Tuesday’s opening round, and she lost more ground after Wednesday’s 78. However, the 155 was still good enough to tie for second with Bothell’s Darcie Richmond.

And with her teammate, fellow sophomore Rachel Choi, shooting an 82 to finish tied for 11th at 169, it proved enough for Kamiak to earn a team trophy, despite bringing just two girls to the tournament.

“I’m very proud of the girls,” Kamiak coach Bud Davis said. “You have Redmond, which had four who qualified for the second day, then there were a number of teams that had three that qualified for the second day, and then Sadena turned it on. So actually I’m surprised we did that well, but I’m very proud of them.

“I thought it was very trying conditions and they showed to me real remarkable character,” Davis added. “It was easy to get frustrated, I saw a lot of girls blow up, but these girls kept their cool and kept playing well.”

Redmond, the only school to have four players make the cut for the second round, won the team title with 83 points. The numerical advantage allowed the Mustangs to win the title despite not having a player finish in the top eight.

Bethel took second with 75 points, while Kamiak tallied 71.

As for Moon, she never found a rhythm on either day of the tournament. During Tuesday’s first round, the wet conditions played havoc with her fairway iron shots. With dryer conditions Wednesday Moon was better tee to green, but wasn’t able to make her putts, often having the ball lip out.

“It was a bit different,” Moon said about her struggles. “My short game I think was worse today than yesterday. But then my other things were better today.”

It wouldn’t have mattered even if Moon had been on her game as Parks, the 2006 state champ, torched the course to the tune of a 5-under 67, overcoming a five-stroke deficit to first-round leader Rui Li of Kentwood. Parks finished with a two-day total of 142.

Li, who appeared to have finished second at 144, ended up being disqualified. The disqualification, which came well after awards had already been presented, was for reasons unknown, and it was the reason why Moon finished tied for second rather than tied for third.

Both Moon and Davis said the level of competition at this year’s tournament was stronger than at last year’s, when Moon won by 12 strokes. Had Li qualified, two of the top six would have been freshmen. Three of the top eight were sophomores.

“It seems that way, that we see more players who are younger who are really quite talented,” Davis said. “There certainly seems to be a growing number of girls involved in summer things to build those skills, so I’d say we’re seeing a growth in the number of players and the skill of those players.”

At Sudden Valley Golf Course

Final round

Team scores—Redmond 83, Bethel 75, Kamiak 71, Kentridge 58.5, Skyview 54.5, Mead 54.5, Lewis and Clark 51, Eastlake 46.5, Prairie 28.5, Thomas Jefferson 12.5.

Individual results—1. Parks (Bethel) 75-67—142, Tie 2. Moon (Kamiak) 77-78—155, 10. Guthrie (Snohomish) 84-83—167, Tie 11. Choi (Kamiak) 87-82—169, 31. Sutter (Oak Harbor) 91-90—181.