W.F. West put Rochester away here on Monday by a score 221-248 in 2A Evergreen Conference boys golf play at Riverside Golf Course.
The Bearcats were paced by Jaron Howell and Brady Hinds who turned in scores of 38 and 39, respectively. Rochester’s Marcus Ashton also shot a 39 on the day.
The difference in the match came down to the teams’ middle tier golfers where the Bearcats held a distinct advantage. Although the Bearcats number three golfer, Dirk Plakinger, mustered only a 51, Camryn Bostwick and Tukker Rosbach helped to pick up the slack with scores of 46 and 47. Dawson Brindle rounded out the Bearcats effort with a score of 54.
“Our guys played to their lowest score so far this season and I guess Rochester also played to their lowest score this season,” noted W.F. West coach, Bruce Thompson. “We got good performances out of our two senior guys, a 38 and a 39 from Jaron and Brady, and our young guys have been putting in some pretty good scores.”
Thompson pointed out that his team features 14 new players this season, including 11 freshman golfers. Plakinger and Rosbach are among those freshman finding a way to contribute on the varsity scene already.
“They are learning fast and they are becoming pretty competitive,” said Thompson, adding that his junior varsity team shot a 238. “Our JV scores have been competitive with other varsity teams. Looking forward to the future for W.F. West golf!”
In addition to Ashton’s score for Rochester Logan Fry turned in a 49, Marcus Corrento shot a 50, Luke Barth managed a 57, Gabe Masias shot a 56, and Ethan Eyer hit the clubhouse with a 54 on his scorecard.
“It was kind of a rainy, soggy day, but it was our best score of the year,” said Rochester coach Eric Holmkvist, who highlighted Ashton’s top-notch score in suboptimal conditions. “Both coaches were very proud of how their teams did. It was a very, very successful day despite the conditions.”
W.F. West (5-3) will play at Tumwater Valley Golf Course against Tumwater next Monday, while Rochester (0-8) will host the T-Birds on Wednesday.
T-Birds Tame Tigers
TUMWATER – Centralia stumbled here in 2A Evergreen Conference golf action on Monday as they fell to the Thunderbirds by a score of 226-254.
The medalist for the day was Parker Mercer of Tumwater who turned in a score of 38. However, Centralia managed to turn in the second and third best scores thanks to rounds of 44 by Rudy Voetberg and 42 by Brett Wasson. Nolan Rice managed a score of 49 for Centralia.
Earlier in the year Rice had been the Tigers number three golfer while Wasson held down the number two spot. Centralia coach Hal Gronseth decided to flip-flop their positions recently but on Monday the golfers seemed to return to their old pecking order.
“He has become our number two,” said Gronseth of Rice. “Brett played pretty well. He certainly played the way he is capable of playing as the number three. It was good to see Brett have a good round.”
Rounding out the scores for Centralia was Luke Lennox with a 58 and Jesse Kuykendall with a 61.
The middle of the Thunderbirds lineup turned in scores that gave their team breathing room coming down the stretch. Tyler Thompson shot a 48, Matthew Gleizes shot a 46 and Robert Pearsall finished with a 43. Jax Monti closed the book on Tumwater scoring with a 51
“It really is the difference. With their depth, their number four guy shoots a 43 and that’s a good score to have. When your last score is a 51, we’re not quite there and ready to compete,” said Gronseth.
Gronseth added that the greens were as damp as they’ve been all season and had recently been plugged, but he wouldn’t lean on that reality as a crutch.
“They putted on the same greens that were putting on so you can’t really use that as an excuse,” said Gronseth. “That being said, it will be nice to get back on our home course and pretty soon all these greens that have been plugged should start to give you a truer read.”
Centralia (4-4 league) will host Black Hills at Riverside on Wednesday.
