Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
AVON - Tippecanoe Valley's boys golf team didn't win Thursday's golf state championship, but the Vikings didn't return home empty-handed.
Junior Drew Shafer shot 76 in the first round and 75 in the second round for a 151, good for seventh place overall and a spot on the IHSAA All-State team. He recorded the score despite having to golf 36 holes at Prestwick Country Club on Thursday, as weather postponed Valley's Wednesday first round.
Evansville North shot a 303 and 305 to win the team championship with a 608. Carmel placed second with a 617. Only the top nine teams and those teams within 20 strokes of the first-place team advanced to the final round. Valley didn't survive past the opening round, shooting a 327.
Columbia City's Mike Schumaker, the lone golfer to shoot under par over 18 holes, won the individual title with a 144. Schumaker, who was one of the golfers to complete 18 holes Wednesday, shot 73 in the first round and a 1-under par 71 in the second round. The top nine individuals and all those individuals (including those not on advancing teams) within six strokes moved on to the finals.
Shafer was one stroke away from tying for fourth place. Two other locals, Warsaw sophomore Aaron Turner and Valley junior Andy Martin, competed in the individual finals but did not place in the top 15. Turner shot a 78 and 85 for a 163, and Martin shot a 78 and 86 for a 164.
"Shafer bogeyed the last two holes he played," Valley coach Roger Moriarty said. "Mentally, I think playing 36 holes got to him. Normally, I think he would have ended up taking fourth place in the state by himself.
"Those kids were tired. Andy made some bad decisions on hole No. 4, hit the ball out of bounds and took a triple."
Said Warsaw coach Bob Turner: "Both Aaron and the Valley contingent did a fine job on the course and also with their emotions and attitudes. Kosciusko County can be proud of these kids on their play and attitudes on the course."
Instead of ending Wednesday evening, first-round play ended at 1:15 p.m. Thursday. The finals then started at 2:30 p.m. Because so many advanced to the finals - 15 individuals and 13 teams - play started with a shotgun start. The finals wrapped up at 8 p.m. The setup forced several competitors to golf 36 holes in one day.
"The lights were getting pretty dim," Moriarty cracked. "We probably had only about 15 minutes left, and then it would have been too dark. We left the course at 9 p.m. It made for a long day, but we had a good time. It was a great experience for the kids."
Coaches say the one fear golfers have about competing at the state finals is embarrassing themselves, and Moriarty took care of that ahead of time.
"You're a good team," Moriarty told his golfers. "That's why you're here. Don't be awed by anybody."
Valley's 327 was the Vikings' worst 18-hole score this year by two strokes. Still, the Vikings were four strokes away from advancing to the finals as a team.
"I was hoping to get the team on, but we missed by four strokes," Moriarty said. "It took a 323 to advance. We finished 16th in the state. We weren't that far away, so it's kind of disappointing.
"We had a fantastic season. Our first time down here in school history, we came within four strokes of advancing."
Also for Valley, Brian Love shot an 86, Anthony Domenco 87 and Brandon Eaton 96.
"We felt coming in we needed to get that third score around 80," Moriarty said. "We felt if we did that, we could have lived with that."
Noblesville won last year's team title with a score of 619. Greenwood senior Nathan Fritz won last year's individual title with a 143.
Moriarty left thinking about the future. Out of his top five golfers, only Eaton graduates. But Warsaw went to the state finals last year, returned four of the five golfers, and failed to get out of the regional this year.
"What an experience," Moriarty said. "It was fantastic. A lot of golfers were sitting at home, wishing they were here."
BOYS STATE GOLF FINALS
Wednesday-Thursday at Prestwick Country Club in Avon
Team scores - 1. Evansville North 303-305 608, 2. Carmel 310-307 617, 3. Zionsville 311-313 624, 4. Marion 318-308 626, 5. Center Grove 316-312 628, 6. Lafayette Jefferson 317-311 628, 7. Culver Military Academy 310-319 629, 8. Bloomington South 320-314 634, 9. Crown Point 309-325 634, 10. Southmont 316-322 638, 11. Terre Haute North 322-317 639, 12. Kokomo 320-323 643, 13. Floyd Central 313-320 633
Teams that failed to qualify for the second round -ÊSeymour 324, Northview 326, TIPPECANOE VALLEY 327, Mishawaka Marian 328, Yorktown 333, Indianapolis Pike 334, Andrean 334, Goshen 338
Top 15 individual scores-Ê1. Mike Schumaker (Col. City) 73-71 144, 2. Jason Jones (Ev. North) 74-73 147, 3. Kevin Wiseman (SB Riley) 73-75 148, 4. Kyle Bush (Carmel) 75-75 150, 4. Mike Payne (TH North) 76-74 150, 4. Justin Wenger (Warren Central) 73-77 150, 7. Todd Chin (Marion) 75-76 151, 7. Michael Everson (Center Grove) 77-74 151, 7. DREW SHAFER (TIPPECANOE VALLEY) 76-75 151, 10. Jason Buffone (Lawrence Central) 78-74 152, 10. Rob Davidge (CMA) 74-78 152, 10. Rob Stochel (Andrean) 78-74 152, 13. Eugene Milner (CMA) 77-76 153, 13. Jeremy Sims (Carmel) 77-76 153, 15. Tony Daniels (Bloomington South) 80-74 154, 15. Aaron Marks (Carmel) 78-76 154
Tippecanoe Valley scores (only Martin and Shafer advanced to second round) - Andy Martin 78-86 164, Drew Shafer 76-75 151, Brian Love 86, Brandon Eaton 96, Anthony Domenico 87
Warsaw score - Aaron Turner 78-85 163
