Although his team fell short of its ultimate goal, Columbus Academy boys golf coach Craig Yakscoe was proud of its play during the Division II state tournament Oct. 14 and 15 at Ohio State’s Scarlet Course.
The Vikings trailed Kettering Alter 309-320 after the opening round and couldn’t rally for the second consecutive year, as the Knights finished first (618) ahead of runner-up Academy (634).
“Kettering Alter is really solid and they’ve been solid and that’s what makes competition tough,” Yakscoe said. “You’re coming in knowing you have to play well. Hats off to them, hats off to our guys. I’m proud of every one of them.”
Last season, Academy rallied from 10 strokes down following the opening day to edge Alter 611-614 for its fifth consecutive state title and 12th overall, second all-time to Upper Arlington’s 17.
“Academy has been the gold standard for us to live up to in terms of Division II,” said Alter coach Alex Schuster, whose team won its fifth state title and first since 1999. “When we see them year after year, it’s always a dog fight. Last year they won the state tournament and we got the better of them a little bit during the regular season. This year we managed to get it done. They have an incredible program and hats off to coach Yakscoe and the amazing job he’s done.”
Stephen Ma led Academy with a 151 to finish third and earn first-team all-state honors.
“The whole team left everything out there, but they just played better than us,” said Ma, a senior who won the individual state title as a sophomore and tied for third as a junior. “The program definitely has a bright future and many more state championships to come.”
Arvind Rajagopalan finished 10th (157) and was second-team all-state. Matthew Fang (158), Jack Woods (171) and A.J. Bradley (173) also competed for Academy.
Competing as an individual, Jonathan Alder’s Brady Fox finished sixth (156) and was second-team all-state.
Delaware Christian’s Scherer ties for 11th, Newark Catholic finishes second in Division III state tournament
Delaware Christian sophomore Gavin Scherer was able to turn the page after a rocky first round, turning in a 1-under-par 71 in the final round Oct. 15 at NorthStar.
Scherer, who was the first in program history to reach state, had a two-round score of 162 to finish in a four-way tie for 11th with Tyler McClain of Delphos St. John’s, Newark Catholic’s Brian Luft and Beverly Fort Frye’s Chatum Courson.
“I just did nothing good all day (in the opening round),” Schrerer said. “But I kept my composure and carried it to the second day and was able to get (a tie for) 11th, which isn’t too bad. I definitely shocked myself that I was able to turn around like that.
“I just kept my head up all day Friday and never got too disappointed. I was just able to come back the second day with my head up and just played like I should have played the first day and got it done.”
Scherer’s score on the second day tied medalist Rocco Turner (145) of Youngstown Mooney for the best score of the round. Turner beat out Middletown Christian’s Josh Winhusen (149) and Cincinnati Seven Hills’ Charlie Mullin (153).
Scherer, a Dublin resident, shot a 19-over 91 and was tied for 40th after the first round.
“Everyone has one of those days where you can’t do anything right,” he said. “That was probably one of the worst scores I’ve had in a couple of years. The wind wasn’t good and the conditions weren’t good. It was just an all-around bad day.”
Scherer got going with a birdie on No. 2, one of five on the day. He shot a 35 on the front nine.
“I got off to a good start with a birdie (on No. 2) and kind of went into cruise control,” he said. “I made one double (on the fifth hole), missed a short put, (then) a couple of birdies (on Nos. 7 and 9).”
Runner-up Newark Catholic (664) held a 12-stroke lead after the first round, but the Green Wave was beaten out by Seven Hills (659). The Stingers shot a 322 in the final round – Newark Catholic shot a 339 – to capture their second state championship and first since 2016.
Newark Catholic’s Brogan Sullivan (157) tied for fourth, ahead of Max Vanoy (27th, 171), Jack Rehbeck (tied for 33rd, 174) and Nathan Riggleman (tied for 40th, 179).
–Michael Rich
sports@thisweeknews.com
@ThisWeekSports
Read More:Columbus Academy boys golf finishes second at state tourney
2022-10-16 00:22:21