Enmore Park's Becky is county star (From This is The West Country)

Enmore Park's Becky is county star

5:28pm Saturday 17th May 2008

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BECKY Dowell, of Enmore Park, was unbeaten as Somerset finished joint third of the six teams in the South-West Region Ladies' Inter-County Match Week at Dudsbury, near Bournemouth, last week.

Hosts Dorset were the winners, with four victories out of five, followed by Devon (three) and Somerset and Cornwall (two-and-a-half points each). Dorset go through to the county championship finals.

Dowell, a student at an American university, did not come into the Somerset side until Wednesday, the third day, by which time they had lost to both Dorset (5-3) and Devon 6-2).

She won both her foursomes and singles as they beat Gloucestershire 6-3 and was also a double winner on the Thursday, when Somerset tied with Cornwall.

On the final day, Somerset beat Wiltshire 7-1, with Dowell and county captain Amanda Mayne halving their foursome and the Enmore player winning her singles 5/4.

The other local players in the Somerset team, Burnham & Berrow's county champion Donna O'Connell, her clubmate Kelly Gallier, Isle of Wedmore's Fiona Beattie and Katie Walls, a country member of Enmore, all had mixed fortunes during a strenuous week.

It was the first time that all the area's six counties had played in one tournament. Previously, the region had been split into two groups, with Glamorgan and Monmouthshire also included. Somerset won their group last year.

Local players' results: Monday (against Dorset) - Foursomes: Bev New/Katie Walls lost 3/2, Donna O'Connell/Fiona Beattie halved. Singles: O'Connell lost 3/2, Walls lost 4/3, Kelly Gallier won 4/3.

Tuesday (against Devon) - Foursomes: New/Walls lost 2/1, Gallier/Beattie lost 6/5. Singles: O'Connell lost 4/3, Walls lost 2 down.

Wednesday (against Gloucs) - Foursomes: Amanda Mayne/Becky Dowell won 2/1, Polly Clark/O'Connell lost 1 down, New/Walls lost 3/2. Singles: Dowell won 3/2, Beattie won 2/1, O'Connell won 1 up, Gallier lost 3/2.

Thursday (against Cornwall) - Foursomes: Dowell/Mayne won 2/1, Walls/Gallier lost 1 down. Singles: Dowell won 2/1, Walls won 4/2, Gallier halved, Beattie lost 2/1.

Friday (against Wilts) - Foursomes: Dowell/Mayne halved, Gallier/Walls won 2-1. Singles: Dowell won 5/4, Walls had a walkover, O'Connell won 1 up, Gallier won 1 up, Beattie won 2/1.

Enmore Park's Hannah Grant, who missed County Match Week because it clashed with the English Ladies' Closed Championship, failed to qualify for the matchplay stages of that event at Ganton, Yorkshire.

She had rounds of 87 and 80 to miss being one of the 32 qualifiers by four shots.

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