"This is one of the most hotly contested regionals I can remember," said one representative of Homestead High School who was distributing awards after the match. "The team play was fantastic."

On a course where a 320 is considered a good team score, Warsaw shot a 304 to beat No. 4 Concordia by a whopping 10 strokes. Garrett, the third-place team, scored a 315.

After the first nine holes, Warsaw and Garrett were tied for the lead at 155 while Wawasee and Dwenger followed close behind with scores of 160. NorthWood stood at 176 after nine holes.

But after the final scores were in, the Tigers came out on top of the rest of the field with a 304. Wawasee dropped to a 338 after having some trouble on the back nine. NorthWood finished the day with a 352.

"We just had a few problems on a few holes," said Wawasee assistant coach Steve Dodds. "We struck the ball well from the tee to the green, but the greens were just a mystery to us today. For some reason we just couldn't make our putts."

Warsaw shot a remarkable 149 on the back nine, and Ryan Slone finished the afternoon with a 72.

"I felt fairly good after the first nine," said Warsaw coach Bob Turner. "But when Ryan Slone came in with a 72, I felt a lot better."

"I went out to play my game on the back nine," said Slone. "It feels good to be going to state. I can't wait to play at state next week."

Justin Howell finished second for the Tigers with a 76 while Adam Johnson and Aaron Turner completed the Warsaw foursome with 78s. Jason Henthorn shot an 89.

"I played fairly well except for my putting," said Howell. "It was hot, but that's a lot better than the rain and cold last year."

However, Wawasee's team did not fare quite as well in the heat as the Tigers did. While Ryan Skaggs shot a 79 to lead Wawasee, the next Warrior finisher, Kyle Lundy, was five strokes behind with an 84. Chad Wortinger finished with an 86, and Scott and Lucas White finished with 89s.

The NorthWood Panthers were consistent on the day, shooting a 176 on the front nine as well as on the back nine. Nick Abel was the top NorthWood finisher after shooting an 83, but his teammate, Zach Stavedahl, was close behind with an 84. Chet Walters finished with an 86, and Chris Cunningham shot a 99 to round out the Panther foursome.

In the individual competition, Drew Shafer of Tippecanoe Valley shot a healthy 76, but sat on the bubble most of the day until the final scores came in. Shafer was edged out but a tie from a Culver Military Academy golfer and a Northridge golfer knocked him out of the state qualifying list.

Valley's Andy Martin shot an 83 on the day, while Manchester's Ryan Burton finished with an 84.

Warsaw's team will travel to Avon, Ind., next week to compete in the state finals Wednesday and Thursday at Prestwick Country Club.

"We had a good day on the course," said Turner. "I knew we would have a good chance of advancing if we played our game, and we did it. We beat Concordia by 10 strokes, and they were ranked No. 4 in the state. I hope we can do it again next week."

HOMESTEAD REGIONAL

Chestnut Hills Golf Course

Fort Wayne

Team Scores -ÊWarsaw 304, Concordia 314, Garrett 315, Culver Military Academy 316, Homestead 319, Dwenger 330, Leo 333, Wawasee 338, Northridge 347, Snider 326, NorthWood 352, Goshen 357.

Individual medalist - Mike Schumaker, Columbia City 67

State qualifier -ÊMatt Campbell, Homestead 72

Warsaw scores - Ryan Slone 38-34-72, Justin Howell 37-39-76, Adam Johnson 39-39-78, Aaron Turner 41-37-78, Jason Henthorn 49-40-89

Wawasee scores -ÊRyan Skaggs 37-42-79, Kyle Lundy 40-44-84, Chad Wortinger 43-43-86, Scott White 41-48-89, Lucas White 42-48-89

NorthWood scores - Nick Abel 44-39-83, Zach Stavedahl 42-42-84, Chet Walters 44-42-86, Chris Cunningham 55-44-99, Josh Corwin DQ.

Local individuals - Drew Shafer, Tippecanoe Valley, 39-37-76; Andy Martin, Tippecanoe Valley 39-44-83; Ryan Burton, Manchester, 42-42-84. [[In-content Ad]]