The Wayne County Athletic League, Inter-Valley Conference and Ohio Cardinal Conference each held their Golf Championships on a nice Thursday afternoon.
It proved to be a thrilling day at Riceland Golf Course for the WCAL, the Hawks flew past Indian Valley at River Greens Golf Course, and Wooster was third at Shelby Crossing Golf Course where the OCC was held.
FEATURE: Athletes perfect juggling act of balancing school, 4-H and athletics
Wayne County Athletic League
Ten strokes separated the top three teams in the WCAL between Waynedale, Smithville and Dalton. The next three teams made it competitive and fun as Hillsdale came in fourth with a 327, Chippewa fired a 331, Norwayne finished sixth with a 372 and Northwestern took seventh with a 410.
“I am extremely happy,” said Golden Bears coach Melinda Budd. “We knew it would be a battle with the top four teams as any of the four had the talent to win it. It was going to be tight as it’s been tight all year and we didn’t expect anything less. Playing 18 holes, it becomes a marathon instead of a sprint.”
“We are actually one stroke better than we were last year,” added Smithies coach Jay Winans. “Unfortunately, Waynedale was 13 better, but it’s been that type of year. We win one, they win one, overall, it’s just been fun for the kids.”
The top four teams were led by the eventual league champion Golden Bears, who earned their 15th title in the past 30 years. Waynedale finished with a 313, two strokes better than the second place Smithies with 315 and ten strokes better than third place Dalton with a 323.
Jordan Miller matched Owen Ward (Smithville) and Thad Weaver (Dalton) for the best score on the day with an even-par 72 at Riceland Golf Course for Waynedale. The trio played an overtime hole where Ward fired a birdie on hole No. 1, which is a par-4, where Miller and Weaver both carded even pars. That wrapped up medalist honors for Ward in a day that fittingly was earned in extra time between a deep drop of league foes.
More: Top Performers: Northwestern’s Mateo Gague nets midweek hat trick
“Owen is cool, calm and collected, he simply doesn’t crack under pressure,” said Winans.
On a day that the Golden Bears needed it, Brayden Schlabach, the no. 6 golfer, carded a 78, Hank Miller fired an 81 and Logan Troyer shot an 82.
“That was huge, Brayden had a great day, and he did a great job handling everything emotionally and physically,” said Budd. “Jordan played really well, and Hank struggled on the front nine but put together a terrific back nine. Hudson played in his world, where nothing really bothers him, and he continued to fight. Logan wasn’t perfect but was steady with pars and bogeys.
“We know that they are all capable of shooting in the 70’s and I feel confident in all six players on a given day that they will be the one. We are clicking at the right time and going forward, there is always something to clean up, but it was a good day.”
Smithville saw Gavin Von Almen with a 76, Brennan Piatt added an 83 and Mason Shutt had an 84. The Bulldogs had Zach Brahler with a 78, Isaac Mori added an 80 and Caiden Stutzman chipped in a 93.
“Brayden (Schlabach) won it for them, that was huge,” said Winans. “For us, Gavin and Mason definitely wanted to do better, but I am definitely happy with their performances. I am really confident of our hopes as we head into the playoffs.”
More: WEEK 4 | Football Stat Leaders
The Falcons were paced by A.J. Brown with a 77 and Landen Timms with an 82, the Chipps were led by Dylan Braswell with a 79 and Anthony Kish with an 80. The Bobcats low scores came from Trace Katanic with a 90 and Carter Slack, with a 91. Jace Rickard and Jason Diehl were the Huskies best with matching 100’s.
Inter-Valley Conference
The big story here was the showdown between Indian Valley and Hiland and it lived up to its billing. Both teams duked it out with five strokes separating the squads, it was the Hawks who came out on top by a 300 to 305 count at River Greens Golf Course.
Hiland was led by standout Jack Mast, who earned medalist honors with two-under 70. Andrew Beun and Camden Bille each fired a 75 to bring the locals into the clubhouse up 220 to 230 with one golfer to go. Jesse Conn and Grant Bille made sure to wrap up the huge IVC win with identical 83’s to offset Phil Rangel’s 78. That made the score 300 to 312 with two golfers still on the links for both teams. The Braves got some help when No. 6 golfer Logan Long wrapped up a 79 to lower their team total to 305, throwing out an 82.
Week 5 Football Preview | Hillsdale hosts Dalton in pivotal WCAL clash
Ohio Cardinal Conference
This day belonged to the Lexington boys and Ashland girls as they won the conference tournament. Locally, Wooster finished third with a 333 and West Holmes piled up a 354.
The Generals were led by Grady Hahn with an 82 followed by Anthony Long (82), Sam Fleming (85) and Colton Lawrence (84). Leading the Knights was Maverick Rickley with an 88. Also playing well for the Knights were Koen Bridenthal with a 90 and the tandem of Zane Kinsey and Connor Burchfield with matching 92’s.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Waynedale wins WCAL, Hiland crowned IVC champs in boys golf
