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Cougars win county title
CLOVERDALE -- Apart from a drizzle or two, the skies stayed clear enough for the Putnam County boys' golf teams to play in the County Tourney at Clover Meadows Thursday.
A cool, breezy day allowed for enjoyable weather as North Putnam claimed the 2015 Putnam County title in 160 strokes, with Austin Judy winning medalist honors for the Cougars with 36.
Greencastle netted second place behind Jake Buis' 42 strokes. Cloverdale finished third with Kylar Galloway and Zach Nichols each having 43 and South Putnam was fourth with Jimmy Rutter's 42 strokes earning him All-County.
All four schools were represented on the All-County team with North Putnam claiming three of the top seven slots.
"I'm very proud of them," North Putnam coach Linda Patrick said. "I commend them. We had a rough little game the other night. We slumped a little, but I just knew and had in my heart that they would come through tonight. This is something they've wanted for three years."
This success comes after North Putnam took the Western Central Conference crown over the weekend. The Cougars were all playing well at Clover Meadows with every player scoring under 50.
"This is the best we've played all year," Judy said. "I'm happy we got our swing together. I knew it was going to happen but still I'm glad we played well today."
Patrick was complimentary of her entire team, from the lone senior in Danny Smith, to the younger golfers who will be back for future seasons.
"Danny's been with me four years," Patrick said. "The juniors Austin and Jake (Holtze) they've been with me three and they are all good golfers. I have to commend my No. 4 and 5, (Preston) Porter and (Emmett) Holsapple because they have stepped up to the plate. They've come on strong and they're real consistent."
The Cougar coach says it's the team's attitude toward practicing that's contributed to its success.
"They all have really good work ethics," she said. "They go out on their own a lot. When we don't have a practice, they are out there on weekends. They work on a lot of individual problems they have. They know a lot about golf and they can fix their problems on their own some times."
Greencastle's score of 175 earned second-place honors and while not the finish GHS may have hoped for, it'll give the Tiger Cubs something to work toward as the sectional matchups draw near.
"The Tiger Cubs were very inconsistent in ball striking, chipping and putting," GHS coach Stephen Paquin said. "We continue to let these areas bring down our scores. North Putnam played well in all the areas that have bothered us. We will continue to work hard to improve our weaknesses. This team has potential to be a good consistent team."
While acknowledging Judy as well as the rest of the North Putnam championship team, Cloverdale coach Doug Wokoun was happy for his Clovers who put up some strong scores in his opinion.
"We were very pleased with Kylar and Zach," Wokoun said. "They both played well. Freddy had a couple of rough patches, but gave a great effort. We were short-handed once again, but under the circumstances these three really did pretty well."
The head coach was also pleased at some of his more inexperienced players who played well in parts of the tournament.
"Chase had some struggles and is still trying to find his way," Wokoun said. "He is capable of much more and just has to continue battling. Zarek got off to a rough start, but leveled off. This was his first big event, and he had some moments of strong play."
South Putnam's score of 202 was the best score for the Eagles all season, indicating the young team is growing in the right direction.
"Most of the guys they played pretty well," Eagle coach Kevin Metz said. "A couple of guys could've taken a few shots here or there. But for what we've been shooting this year we were pretty close to our averages."
Metz is most optimistic about coming years and watching his Eagles grow as golfers.
"We don't have any seniors this year," he said. "That's something I've been happy about this year just because we'll see the same group come back next year and I have seen improvement."
Metz feels this fourth-place finish is a step in the right direction.
As for the County Champs the players and coaches are looking toward the post-season with hungry eyes but also want to remain focused on the next four matches before season's end.
"We've got some people here like Austin, who individually has a good chance to go to state if he keeps his game going," Patrick said. "I'm really optimistic. I have to be optimistic that's the only way you can do this."
At Clover Meadows
Putnam County Tournament
North Putnam 160
Greencastle 175
Cloverdale 183
South Putnam 202
North Putnam - Austin Judy 36, Jake Holtze 40, Danny Smith 41, Preston Porter 43, Emmett Holsapple 46
Greencastle - Jake Buis 42, Jake Bennett 44, Blaze Hasty 44, Carl Basile 45, Jonah Stevens 48
Cloverdale - Kylar Galloway 43, Zach Nichols 43, Freddy Fislar 45, Chase Snyder 52, Zarek Wellington 57
South Putnam - Jimmy Rutter 42, Taylor Hicks 50, Jacob Williams 53, Collin McAllister 56, Bradley Shrader 57
All-County - Judy (NP), Holtze (NP), Smith (NP), Rutter (SP), Buis (G), Galloway (C), Porter (NP), Nichols (C)