Metro Sports Report

Furnish, J-Hawks win CRANDIC

Megan Furnish missed qualifying for the Class 4A state golf tournament by a single shot last year, but it looks like she could be on course for a trip this season.

Furnish won top honors at the CRANDIC meet Wednesday and helped Cedar Rapids Jefferson claim the team championship on a cold, gray day at Hunters Ridge Golf Course in Marion.

Furnish fired a 7-over-par 79 on the 5,090-yard layout to beat Madison Goodfellow of Iowa City West by one stroke. Kimmy Askelson of Xavier finished third at 89 in the blustery conditions.

The golfers wore jackets, hats and mittens in an effort to keep warm with the temperature in the low 40s and the wind-chill lower than that. It was not a day for low scores, but Furnish topped the field of 49 golfers from nine schools.

"It shows a lot of character and heart," Jefferson Coach Dan Ray said. "She came off the front-9 with a 42 and I could tell she wasn't satisfied."

Furnish shot a 1-over-par 37 on the back-9 for the title. "That's tough to do under these conditions," Ray said.

Furnish had to beat the elements before she could beat the rest of the golfers.

"Try to stay positive and stay focused on the ball, not the weather," she said. "I tried to focus on my shots, not the other people. Stay positive, stay focused, and my putting came around a little better."

Furnish was paired with Askelson and Emma Lorenz of Linn-Mar. Askelson finished fourth in the Class 4A state tournament last year and has signed with Drake, but she struggled with a lingering calf injury and shot 43-46 for her 89.

Zach Bohannon will not join his brother at UNI

Zach Bohannon is looking forward to being a regular college student and a regular college basketball player after two years of a strict military regime at the Air Force Academy.

He's leaving the academy and will transfer to another Division I school, but said Wednesday night he will not be joining his brother Matt at the University of Northern Iowa.

Bohannon was interested in playing his final two years for Northern Iowa, but his parents have learned that UNI does not have any scholarships available for him.

"I can tell you that is not a possibility. I will not be playing with my brother," he said. "They don't really have a spot for me."

Matt Bohannon will be joining UNI as a freshman next season after helping Linn-Mar win the Class 4A state title this year. Zach Bohannon helped Linn-Mar win a state title in 2007.

"I have talked to a few schools and I have a couple of options," Bohannon said. "I haven't narrowed it down at all, except that I'm going to go Division I. I've had a lot of D-II interest, but I just felt I want to stay at this level."

Joens carries family legacy in discus

Sam Joens carries more than a discus when he competes for the Cedar Rapids Prairie track team. He carries a family legacy.

A member of the Joens family began throwing the discus at Prairie more than 30 years ago. They've been good, too.

Sam's father, Scott Joens, holds the school record in the discus. Jake Joens, one of Sam's uncles, won a state title.

Craig Joens, another uncle, also threw at Prairie. So did two of Sam's aunts, Sara and Angie, and so did his sister, Amy. A bunch of cousins have thrown, too. Sara held the women's record in the discus at one time, until a cousin (Holly) broke it.

Sam Joens is the latest, and he's sustaining the family's proud tradition in the event. He finished sixth at the Class 4A state meet last year as a junior and currently ranks second in the state with a heave of 170 feet, 6 inches.

His father set the school record at 185 feet, 4 inches in 1982 and it's stood for 29 years. Sam wants to break that mark, but needs another 15 feet.

Football for a great cause

I had a chance last Friday to attend one of the most inspirational luncheons of the year.

It was the annual lunch hosted by the El Kahir Shrine for the players and cheerleaders who will be participating in the annual Shrine Bowl football game this July in Ames. It's a good time for both families and the media to get together and talk about the football season that was, but it's much more than that.
 
As most sports fans in Iowa know, the Shrine Bowl helps to raise funds for Shriners Hospitals for Children, which are dedicated to helping kids with debilitating illnesses and diseases. Each year most of the top football players around the state suit up to play one final high school football game before they head off to college, or whatever direction they are headed. Over the last several years cheerleaders have been added to the mix to lend a hand to make this a truly special night.
 
But the big winners are the kids in the hospitals who are helped by the money raised for this game. When you walk into the luncheon, you immediately see pictures of the smiling faces of these kids who look up to these players and cheerleaders. The motto of the game says it all: "Strong legs run so that weak legs may walk." There is a great sense of responsibility for everyone associated with the game.