Elks busy with plenty of MAC golf

CARTHAGENA - The Mercer County Elks was loaded with high school golfers on Monday.

In boys competition, Fort Recovery, St. Henry and Botkins clashed in a tri-match, while St. John's met Coldwater in Midwest Athletic Conference action. The Fort Recovery girls had a showdown with the unbeaten, defending conference champion St. Henry Redskins and Marion Local played host to New Bremen.

Highlighting the day were the Indian boys and Redskin girls, both of whom posted their best scores of the season in wins. Fort Recovery scored a 158 in their MAC victory over St. Henry (192) and Botkins (217) and the Redskin girls remained unblemished in conference play with a 194-233 win over Fort Recovery. St. Henry's 194 was 12 strokes better than their previous season's best.

Fort Recovery's Jackson Hobbs scorched the course, shooting a one-under 35. Derek Backs (38), Chase Bruns (40) and Cole Wendel (45) also contributed solid rounds for the Indians.

"We've been pretty decent this season," said Fort Recovery coach Brad Evers, whose team ranks in the top three of the MAC standings. "We've had some good scores in the 160s which is pretty solid. I don't know if that's quite good enough to move on out of sectionals but it will put us in the hunt anyways. Hopefully we can get out of there."

The St. Henry boys were paced by Kyle Naumann's 45. Seth King (47), Justin Ahlers (49) and Mitchell Dorner (51) rounded out the scoring.

"I'm pleased with how we've improved on the season," St. Henry coach John Dorner said. "Our short game hasn't come along as fast as I want, but that's usually the slowest thing to come to inexperienced golfers.

"I think Kyle Naumann has been consistent for us all year in the No. 1 hole as a freshman. That's been good. We've pretty much counted the two seniors' (Alan Albers' and Mitchell Dorner's) scores almost every match. They've given us consistent play. The other senior, Justin Ahlers, who never played before has worked his way up to the No. 6 golfer. He's playing a lot better than he was. We're getting better as a team."

Both teams return to MAC play on Thursday. Fort Recovery will travel to take on New Bremen and St. Henry hosts conference-leading Minster.

Haleigh Staugler led a trio of Redskins in the 40s with a 47. Teammates Lauren Grieshop (48) and Alyssa Mescher (49) were right on her heels and Katie Clune added a 50 as the team improved to 5-0 in MAC play.

"We're 5-0 in the MAC. It feels pretty good going into the end of the season being undefeated but we've got a few big matches left," St. Henry girls co-coach Wendi Moorman said. "Minster on Thursday and Versailles next week. It's good to be at this place right now at this time of the season."

Trisha Thien led the way for the Fort with a 52, Tori Vaughn netted a 55, Cori Stone contributed a 61 and Emily Bruns shot a 65. Fort Recovery hosts New Bremen on Thursday.

Coldwater suffered a 182-193 setback to Delphos St. John's. The Blue Jays improved to 4-4 in MAC play and the Cavs dropped to 2-4. Coldwater's Tyler Kanney was the medalist with a 40.

"Tyler Kanney has been consistent all year. He's definitely our team leader," Coldwater coach Doug Timmerman said. "We kind of go as he goes, so to speak."  

Josh Scott (49), Jarren Kunk (51) and Andrew Fisher (53) rounded out the scoring for the Cavs.

"I was really pleased with our freshman (Fisher) we had golfing in the varsity match," Timmerman added. "He shot a 53. That's really encouraging for us. I was glad to see him move up to the next level and play well for his age."

Brandon Slate led a balanced Delphos lineup with a 44.

Coldwater returns to action Wednesday at Arrowhead in a makeup match against New Knoxville.

New Bremen's Sydney Holdren was match medalist with a 51 and teammate Sara Lafleur added a 57 in the Cardinals' 234-246 over the Flyers. Jessica Hoyt (59) and Molly Kindle (60) led the charge for Marion.

New Bremen returns to MAC play on Thursday against Fort Recovery at the Elks. The Flyers next play on Sept. 15 against Coldwater.