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NORTH MANCHESTER - It took five or six matches, but finally, Tippecanoe Valley's boys golf team played like it has been practicing.
The Vikings shot so well they won Saturday's 12-team Whitko Invitational at Sycamore Golf Club, which included the likes of Wawasee, ranked No. 5 in the preseason poll.
They shot so well their score of 313 set an 18-hole school record. The previous record was 316, set in 1991 at Norwood Golf Course in Huntington.
The 1999 Vikings had been shooting 150 to 160 in practices, but not in matches - until Saturday. At the Whitko Invitational, the Vikings shot a 154 on the front nine and a 159 on the back nine.
Also at Saturday's Whitko Invitational was New Prairie. On April 19, New Prairie shot a 322 to take third in the Michigan City Invitational. Valley shot a 341 in the same match.
One week later at Sycamore, New Prairie shot a 322 to take another third. The difference was, Valley shot a 313 to finish first. Wawasee shot a 322 to take second, beating New Prairie on the fifth-man score tiebreaker.
"The competition was there," Valley coach Roger Moriarty said. "New Prairie shot 322, and they finished (third) to Warsaw last week in the Michigan City Invitational. New Prairie clipped us by 19 strokes at Michigan City, but we had not played well."
The first-place team score wasn't enough for Valley. Their top two golfers, Drew Shafer and Andy Martin, tied for the best scores on the day with 74s. Shafer took the medalist honors with a tiebreaker.
Also for Valley, Brian Love shot an 81, Anthony Domenico an 84 and Brandon Eaton an 89.
"We got excellent play up and down the lineup," Moriarty said, "which is what we had been lacking in our first four or five matches."
Ryan Skaggs shot a 75 to lead Wawasee. Shane Henderson's 77 led Whitko, which finished fifth on its home course, with a 328. Manchester, led by Ryan Burton's 81, finished ninth with a 356.
Wawasee had the high preseason ranking. Whitko, last year's Three Rivers Conference champion, was playing on its home course. New Prairie had throttled Valley by 19 strokes just seven days earlier.
Despite all these things, Moriarty was confident.
"We went in expecting to win it," he said. "Even with the 313, I told the guys it's nice, but it's just another barrier to be broken. This team has more shots left in it.
"One of these days, one of these kids will shoot a 32, and we will have four kids in the 30s."
WHITKO INVITATIONAL
18-hole match at Sycamore Golf Club in North Manchester
1. TIPPECANOE VALLEY 313, 2. WAWASEE 322, 3. New Prairie 322, 4. Wabash 328, 5. WHITKO 328, 6. Northfield 333, 7. Central Noble 336, 8. LaVille 342, 9. MANCHESTER 356, 10. Fairfield 358, 11. Southwood 371, 12. West Noble 378
Tippecanoe Valley -ÊDrew Shafer 74, Andy Martin 74, Brian Love 81, Anthony Domenico 84, Brandon Eaton 89
Wawasee -ÊRyan Skaggs 75, Lucas White 80, Chad Wortinger 83, Scott White 84, Carter Ploszek 86
Whitko - Shane Henderson 77, Rob Wright 79, Levi Krider 83, J.R. Manuel 89, Mike Waybright 97
Manchester -ÊRyan Burton 81, Mike Good 89, Derek Miller 92, Evan Schenkel 94, Tony Ritenour 96
