Champs on the links

Compiled by Gary R. Rasberry

An undefeated league season was not enough for the Coldwater girls golf team.

The Cavaliers tamed the Stillwater Valley golf course to win Saturday's Midwest Athletic Conference tournament and capture the school's first conference title in the sport.

The Cavaliers shot a 380, 22 strokes better than host Versailles. Fort Recovery edged St. Henry 415-416 for third with Minster (423), Delphos St. John's (432), Marion Local (449), New Bremen (483) and Parkway (544) rounding out the field.

"It starts in the summer," said Coldwater coach Bret Ayers. "Once golf season starts Aug. 1, things get going with matches. Several of the girls put in work playing in (the Lima Junior Golf Association summer tour). That's a big key: playing the game and getting better. We've been a consistent team. We don't have just one standout. It's a total team effort."

In the individual standings, St. Henry's Ellen Naumann was in a duel with Fort Recovery's Jalyn Bruns for Golfer of the Year honors based on points earned during the season and tournament. Naumann was the only golfer to break 80 on the day with a 78 to capture tournament medalist and edge Bruns, who shot an 88 to finish third behind Coldwater's Grace Buschur (84), by two points to earn the top honor for the second straight season.

Versailles' Cayla Batten (93) was fourth and Minster's Layne Voisard (94) was fifth. Coldwater's Jordan Hemmelgarn (96), teammate Sarah Diller (99) and Fort Recovery's Shelby Stammen (99) were the other golfers to break 100 on the day.

Joining Naumann, Bruns, Voisard, Hemmelgarn, Batten, Buschur and Stammen on the All-MAC first team are Coldwater's Lexi Wright and Versailles' Maddie Durham and Lindsay Cotner. Second team honors went to Diller, Coldwater's Laney Finke, St. John's Cassidy Werts and Paige Gaynier, Versailles' Jayla Pothast, Minster's Jenna Heuker and Katie Heitkamp and Marion's Aliyah Arling. Honorable mention accolades went to New Bremen's Allison Hays and Abbie Burden, St. Henry's Courtney Clune, Coldwater's Abby Ashbaugh, Marion Local's Hailey Wilker, St. John's Jillian Dickman and Cassidy Beining and Fort Recovery's Alli Vaughn.

BOYS TOURNAMENT

Coldwater came away with a big effort on its home course of the Mercer County Elks, but Minster's third-place showing heped clinch the outright title.

The Cavaliers shot a 344 to win the tournament with St. John's second with a 347 and Minster third with a 356. The Wildcats' finishing 9-0 in league matches helped them clinch the outright league title by two points over the Cavaliers and Blue Jays. St. Henry (357), Versailles (363), Fort Recovery (373), New Bremen (381), Marion Local and Parkway (tie with 398) and New Knoxville (413) completed the leaderboard.

In the individual standings, Minster's Joseph Magoto, Coldwater's Carson Muhlenkamp and St. John's Jack Gerker were all battling for Golfer of the Year honors. Muhlenkamp shot a 76 to earn tournament medalist honors and Gerker was in second with a 79. Magoto's 81 was good for a tie for third place with St. Henry's Nate Niekamp to clinch the points title by a 153 1/2 to 152 1/2 margin over Muhlenkamp with Gerker third with 152 points. Rounding out the first team All-MAC honors were Versailles' Justin Heitkamp and Isaac White, Minster's Brady Hoelscher, St. Henry's Sam Koesters, St. John's Collin Feathers, Jeffery Odenweller and Trent Lindeman and New Bremen's Jared Bergman.

Second team honors went to St. Henry's Ben Romer and Seth Heitkamp, Fort Recovery's Carson Rammel and Derek Lochtefeld, Coldwater's Nick Kline and Keegan Bruggeman, New Bremen' Preston Hoehne and Versailles' Keegan May.

Honorable mention honorees were Marion Local's Logan Fleck and Marcus Rethman, Minster's Nathan Beair and Mitchell Bornhorst, Fort Recovery's Isaac LeFevre, Coldwater's Ben Giere and New Knoxville's Sam Anspach and Max Henschen.