Linn-Mar Boys Golf

Lions finish 11th at state golf

IOWA CITY – The six seniors on the Kennedy boys golf team were hoping to close their stellar high school careers with a state championship but settled for a fourth-place finish Saturday in the Class 4A meet at the Finkbine Golf Course.

“I don’t want to use the word disappointed, because that doesn’t sound right for this group of kids,” said Cougar Coach Mark Wilden.  “Still, I know they would have liked to have done better than fourth.

“But they finished in the top four in the state four years in a row. That’s not bad. They’ve had a good run.”

Their season-long pacesetter, Cody Bell, started the second day of the tournament tied for 11th place after an opening-round 79 but came back Saturday with a 75 to tie for sixth.  He placed fourth in the state last year.

“I drove the ball a lot better today,” Bell said Saturday afternoon following two days of balmy, but windy weather.  “And I hit my irons really well. I just didn’t have a real good feel for the greens. I could have played a lot better.”

In reality, neither he nor his teammates had much of a chance to overcome the contingent from West Des Moines Valley.

Led by medalist Jeff Swegle, a sophomore who shot an even-par shot 144 par over the 36 holes, Valley took the team title with a total score of 607, 17 strokes better than runner-up Waukee.  Dowling Catholic of West Des Moines was one stroke behind at 625 for third, and Kennedy came in at 634.

Linn-Mar, the only other Metro school in the 12-team tournament, finished in next-to-last place with a 660 total, seven strokes in back of Iowa City City High and three better than Bettendorf.

“With our five seniors on the team, our goal was to finish in the top five,” said Lion Coach Steve Kahler.  “I know the kids are disappointed. We were about 20 strokes over our season average and had a bad couple of days.

“But there were a lot of good teams in the tournament, and we were ranked 10th coming in. So maybe it’s about right.”

Lion senior star Tyler McCann rebounded from a disastrous first-round 87 with a 77 on Saturday to claim a tie (along with Kennedy senior Tyler Kalina) for 36th place among individuals.

“I’m pleased that I came back,” McCann said at the end. “I sort of lost my game on Friday. If I’d had two days like today, I would have been right in the mix. It’s too bad, but that’s the way it goes sometimes.”

Linn-Mar’s low scorer was fellow senior Trevor Berry, who had rounds of 79 and 81 to finish tied for 22nd with a 160 total. He was matched by Kennedy senior Brigham Stewart, who shot an 80 both days.

“I’m a little disappointed in how I played,” Stewart said. “And I wish the team could have finished higher in our last tournament together.

“But we had a good senior year, won our conference and the CRANDIC tournament. These two days aren’t the end of the world.”

The lone junior among Kennedy starters, Harrison Moore, shot a 78 on Saturday and paired it with a first-round 81 to tie for 18th at 159. Cougar senior teammate Mitch Martin tied for 25th with a two-day score of 162.

“I didn’t hit the ball terrible both days,” said Martin. “I put myself in the right position to make putts. But I just didn’t make the putts.”

On one hole, for instance, he had a 30-foot downhill putt for a birdie.  He hit his shot past the hole and ended up four-putting for a double bogey.

Qualifying for individual honors, Xavier senior J.P. King began the day tied for eighth following a first-round 78.  He tailed off with an 82 on Saturday to close at 160 in a tie for 22nd.  But King and his Coach Tim O’Brien said it was a good way to finish up his senior season.

“He only had two holes higher  than bogey out of 36 holes on a very tough course in very windy conditions,” O’Brien said.  “I couldn’t be more proud of his effort. He stayed in his game the whole way.”

For his part, King said he started out well.

“Then, I had a few rough holes when I was hitting the ball all over the place. But overall I had a couple of pretty good scores.”

Kennedy's Wilden could say the same about his group of close-knit golfers over the past four years.  They finished fourth in the state twice, third once and runner-up once.

“It’s been a great class,” the veteran coach said.  “I’m going to miss them.”

BOYS CLASS 4A STATE GOLF TOURNAMENT
At Iowa City
(Finkbine Golf Course, par-72)

Teams
1. WDM Valley           309-298--607
2. Waukee                   311-313--624
3. WDM Dowling        314-311--625
4. CR Kennedy           319-315--634
5. Ankeny                   322-313--635
6. Ames                       329-314--643
7. Ottumwa                322-322--644
8. Muscatine              327-323--650
9. Cedar Falls             337-316--653
10. Iowa City High    323-330--653
11. Linn-Mar             334-326--660
12. Bettendorf           331-332--663

Individuals
1. Jeff Swegle (WDM Valley)          69-75--144
2. Tomas Gouveia (WDM Valley)  76-75--151
3t. Jon Calhoun (WDM Dowling)    77-75--152
3t. Connor Littlefield (Waukee)      75-77--152
5. Colin Pearson (Fort Dodge)        80-73--153
6t. Andrew Huseman (Ankeny)     80-74--154
6t. Jacob Bermel (Cedar Falls)       79-75--154
6t. Cody Bell (CR Kennedy)            79-75--154
9t. Dustin Atkinson (Ames)            78-77--155
9t. Sammy DeBartolo (WDM D)    77-78--155
9t. Isaac Vandersee (WDM V)       80-75--155
12t. Kurt Martin (Ames)                80-76--156
12t. Grant Campbell (Waukee)     75-81--156
14t. Sam Elliott WDM Valley)       84-73--157
14t. Austin Howe (Waukee)          78-79--157

KENNEDY (634)
Cody Bell                79-75--154
Harrison Moore     81-78--159
Brigham Stewart   80-80--160
Mitchell Martin      79-83--162
Tyler Kalina           82-82--164
Jake Wilding          83-86--169

LINN-MAR (660)
Trevor Berry         79-81--160
Tyler McCann        87-77--164
Trevor McCann     85-84--169
Clay Vieth              86-84--170
Kyle Hackett          84-92--176
Mark Drake           93-86--179

XAVIER
JP King                   78-82--160

Lions 11th after 1st day of state golf

IOWA CITY - They played the first round of the Class 4A state golf tournament Friday and the winner was the Finkbine Golf Course.

Slick greens and windy conditions left many of the state'e elite golfers shaking their head in dismay as a succession of high scores came rolling off the University of Iowa course.

Cody Bell and Mitchell Martin led Kennedy with 7-over-par 79s, unusually high scores but good enough to leave the Cougars only 10 shots behind West Des Moines Valley heading into the final round on Saturday.

"It's do-able," said Kennedy Coach Mark Wilden said.

West Des Moines Valley took the lead with a four-man score of 21-over-par 309. Waukee is second at 311, with Dowling Catholic third at 314 and Kennedy fourth at 319.

"It's not impossible. It's golf. Anything can happen," Wilden said. "We can all shoot 72. It's going to take a good day on our part and not a particularly good day on their part. If we shoot 300 and they do what they did today, we're right there."

Kennedy has finished 3rd, 4th and 2nd at the state meet the last three years. The Cougars are in position for another top-5 finish, but the state title has been their goal all year.

Linn-Mar had a tough day Friday and stands in 11th place in the 12-team field at 334. Trevor Berry led the Lions with a 79.

J.P. King of Xavier posted the low score among Metro golfers Friday with a 6-over-par 78. The Saints did not qualify for the state meet as a team, but King qualified as an individual and is tied for seventh place going into the final round.

"I thought I did pretty well," King said. "I left a couple of shots out there, but that happens in golf."

King belted a long drive on the 401-yard No.1 hole and it got a favorable roll down a slope toward the green. He figured it probably went about 340 yards, leaving only a short chip to the green.

"I wasn't expecting it, I'll tell you that," he said. "I was pretty lucky. It rolled a long ways, but it was a good shot."

King hit a soft chip shot to about six feet from the cup and knocked it in for a birdie. "That was a good hole for me," he said.

King also hit a great chip on the 7th hole for a one-foot birdie. He enjoyed those short putts, because the longer ones were extremely tricky.

"Uphill you kind of baby it and leave it short," King said. "Downhill, if you hit it hard you would go screaming by. It was interesting putting out there."

Jeff Swegle of West Des Moines Valley tamed the wind and fast greens with a 3-under-par 69, by far the best round of the day and good for a six-shot lead heading into the final round.

"A 69 out here today is an unbelieveably good round," said King, saluting the leader.

Wilden thought the greens were fast, but not unfair. "Typical Finkbine greens," he observed. "They're in great shape. The course is in great shape."

Bell and Brigham Stewart had a total of seven 3-putt greens for the Cougars, accounting for much of their 10-stroke deficit. Both of them are normally good putters and play in the No.1 and No.2 spots for Kennedy. Stewart shot an 8-over 80.

"If we took all of our 3-putts out from just our top two guys, we're seven strokes better," Wilden said. "We just have to cut down on those mistakes.

"We have to adjust to the speed of the greens and you have to position your ball on the greens," he said. "Unfortunately we were not always in the fairway, so that made it tough for us to be where we wanted to be on the greens."

Harrison Moore was Kennedy's fourth scorer Friday with a 9-over-par 81. Tayler Kalina shot an 82 and Jake Wilding had an 83.

Linn-Mar senior Tyler McCann, the runnerup at the district meet Tuesday with a 74, struggled and finished at 15-over-par 87 Friday. Kyle Hackett shot an 84 for the Lions, Trevor McCann had an 85, Clay Vieth 86 and Mark Drake 93.

CLASS 4A STATE GOLF
Finkbine Golf Course
Iowa City
6,586 Yards, Par 72

Team Standings

1. West Des Moines Valley 309, 2. Waukee 311, 3. Dowling Catholic 314, 4. Kennedy 319, 5. (tie) Ottumwa 322; Ankeny 322, 7. Iowa City High 323, 8. Muscatine 327, 9. Ames 329, 10. Bettendorf 331, 11. Linn-Mar 334, 12. Cedar Falls 337.


Top 15 Individuals

1.  Jeff Swegle, WDM Valley              69
2.  Connor Littlefield, Waukee            75
Grant Campbell, Waukee               75
4.  Thomas Gouveia, WDM Valley       76
5.  Braxton Coble, Ottumwa              77
Jon Calhoun, Dowling                   77
7.  J.P. King, Xavier                         78
Austin Howe, Waukee                78
Rob Taylor, Dowling                   78
Dustin Atkinson, Ames                78
11. Cody Bell, Kennedy                   79
Mitchell Martin, Kennedy             79
Trevor Berry, Linn-Mar                79
Grant Simpson, City High            79
Jacob Bermel, Cedar Falls           79
Taylor Rittman, Ankeny             79
Britton VanderLinden, Indianola  79

AMES - Kurt Martin 80, Dustin Atkinson 78, Connor Power 88, Jack Sanders 89, Ryan Wengert 88, Dom Sorrentino 83.

ANKENY - Connor Peck 81, Andrew Huseman 80, Taylor Rittman 79, Griffin Matthias 88, Jesse Peck 85, Joey Rinker 82.

BETTENDORF - Cody Bender 89, Dan Robsinson 80, Alex Pohlmann 81, Brett Gaydos 96, Mitch Elkin 92, Nick Atwell 81.

CEDAR FALLS - Jacob Bermel 79, Wil Hunemuller 85, Jared Deines 86, Andy Kloos 93, Alec Braun 87, Jon Skarlis 93.

KENNEDY - Cody Bell 79, Brigham Stewart 80, Mitchell Martin 79, Harrison Moore 81, Jake Wilding 83, Tyler Kalina 82.

DOWLING - Jon Calhoun 77, Jack Gradoville 82, Sammy DeBartolo 77, Rob Taylor 78, Ricky DeBartolo 82, James Hansen 85.

IOWA CITY HIGH - Grant Simpson 79, Ryan Duncan 81, Nate Goddard 83, Trent Bedford 97, Zachary MacMillan 82, Patrick Jordan 81.

LINN-MAR - Tyler McCann 87, Trevor Berry 79, Clay Vieth 86, Mark Drake 93, Kyle Hackett 84, Trevor McCann 85.

MUSCATINE - Josh Anderson 80, Michael Canfield 82, Alex Snyder 83, Drake Decker 84, Tyler Askren 82, Adam Hutton 89.

OTTUMWA - Matt Walker 82, Christian Archer 83, Erik Thorgaard 83, Joe Wetrich 80, Braxton Coble 77, Dillon Patritto 94.

WDM VALLEY - Jeff Swegle 69, Broc Everett 84, Thomas Gouveia 76, Isaac Vandersee 80, Sam Elliott 84, Cole Wyckoff 85.

WAUKEE - Mike Woofter 83, Grant Campbell 75, Austin Howe 78, Zach Knudtson 86, Connor Littlefield 75, Aaron DeNucci 85.

Lions 3rd at district, qualify for state golf

CEDAR FALLS - Cody Bell is unflappable.

Some golfers might lose their cool after missing two short putts at the start of an important round, but not Bell. He shrugged it off and surged to the top.

Bell claimed medalist honors with a 1-over-par 73 Tuesday to help Kennedy win the Class 4A district golf title at Pheasant Ridge Golf Course in Cedar Falls.

Bell missed a 3-foot birdie putt on the 570-yard second hole and had to settle for par. Then he missed another short putt on the 420-yard fourth hole and took a bogey.

He never tossed a club or uttered an unhappy word. His only visible sign of annoyance was a small grimace.

"It was just a matter of settling in," he said. "You have those nerves going in, but I was able to settle in and I was able to salvage the round."

Bell collected four birdies after his slow start and beat Linn-Mar senior Tyler McCann by one stroke.

"Cody is just an unusual individual. He doesn't let things bother him," Kennedy Coach Mark Wilden said. "He has a great temperament."

Bell played the first nine holes at 2-over par, then played the back nine at 1-under for his tight victory.

"I'm proud of it," he said. "I felt like I came out here and competed with everyone else. I hit the ball really well. That was the key to my success."

Kennedy, Cedar Falls and Linn-Mar qualified for the Class 4A state meet at Finkbine Golf Course in Iowa City this Friday and Saturday. They will be part of an elite field that will feature 12 of the top-15 teams in Iowa.

Xavier finished fourth in the team standings and failed to qualify for state by eight shots, but Xavier senior J.P. King tied for fourth in the individual race with a 76 and advanced.

Kennedy posed for a team picture after winning the district title, but the Cougars viewed Tuesday's meet as a stepping-stone toward the ultimate prize. The top three teams in each district advanced to the state tournament, and everybody will start fresh when they get to Finkbine on Friday.

"I was just hoping to finish in the top-3 (at districts)," Wilden remarked. "To win it is a bonus.

"Winning a district championship is always a great thing to do, but really it's the state tournament that we're looking for."

Kennedy has won district titles before - "This is like our fourth or fifth in row," Wilden said - so there was no big celebration Tuesday. There's still work to do.

The Cougars finished third at the state meet in 2008, fourth in 2009 and second in 2010. They'd like to finish the job this year.

"I think we have the pieces," Bell remarked. "We just all need to be clicking at the same time."

Harrison Moore shot a 4-over-par 76 for Kennedy to help lead the charge to state. Jake Wilding fired a 77 and Mitchell Martin contributed a 78 to complete the team scoring. Brigham Stewart shot 79 and Tyler Kalina had an 80, but they weren't needed in the standings.

There were four district meets around the state Tuesday and all of the teams ranked 1 through 9 in the latest poll advanced. That includes No. 1 Ankeny, No. 2 West Des Moines Valley, No. 3 Dowling Catholic, No. 4 Ames, No. 5 Kennedy, No. 6 Waukee, No. 7 Ottumwa, No. 8 Cedar Falls and No. 9 Muscatine.

The Xavier Saints, ranked 10th, were the only member of the top-10 that failed to advance. The rest of the state tournament field includes No. 11 Linn-Mar, No. 13 Iowa City High and No. 15 Bettendorf.

"I think we are a legitimate contender," Wilden said. "We've already beaten some of those teams. The two teams that we need to prove ourselves against would be Ankeny and West Des Moines Valley, and I think we can play with both of those teams.

"A lot of quality teams are going to be down there," he said. "No sloughs are going to be down there."

Kennedy finished the district tournament at 305, with Cedar Falls at 306 and Linn-Mar at 310. The Lions are returning to state for the first time since 2008, fulfilling a team goal.

Several of Linn-Mar's golfers got off to slow starts Tuesday, but held it together and had strong finishes.

"They showed a lot of pride today," Linn-Mar Coach Steve Kahler said. "We knew it was going to be a dogfight and they really came out and performed very well. They showed some character."

Tyler McCann led the way for Linn-Mar with his 2-over-par 74. Clay Vieth shot a 77, followed by Trevor Berry (79), Mark Drake (80), Kyle Hackett (85) and Trevor McCann (86).

Cedar Rapids Washington finished in seventh place and Cedar Rapids Jefferson was 12th.

Cedar Rapids Prairie placed seventh at the 4A district at Glynn's Creek Golf Course in Long Grove Tuesday and failed to qualify for state. The top three teams at Glynn's Creek were Muscatine, Iowa City High and Bettendorf.

CLASS 4A DISTRICT MEET
At Cedar Falls
(Pheasant Ridge, par 72)

Top 3 teams and top 4 individuals (plus ties) qualify for state meet Oct. 7-8 at Finkbine Golf Course in Iowa City.

Team Standings

1. Kennedy 304, 2. Cedar Falls 305, 3. Linn-Mar 310, 4. Xavier 318, 5. Hempstead 320, 6. Waterloo West 323, 7. Washington 329, 8. Mason City 332, 9. Marshalltown 333, 10. Dubuque Senior 339, 11. Wahlert 342, 12. Jefferson 346, 13. Waterloo East 402.

Top 10 Individuals

1. Cody Bell, Kennedy                73
2. Tyler McCann, Linn-Mar          74
3. Andy Kloos, Cedar Falls          75
4. J.P. King, Xavier                   76
Harrison Moore, Kennedy       76
Carson Hillery, Hempstead      76
Wil Hunemuller, Cedar Falls     76
8. Jacob Bermel, Cedar Falls      77
Jon Skarlis, Cedar Falls          77
Jake Wilding, Kennedy         77
Clay Vieth, Linn-Mar             77

KENNEDY (304): Cody Bell 73, Harrison Moore 76, Jake Wilding 77, Mitchell Martin 78, Brigham Stewart 79, Tyler Kalina 80

LINN-MAR (310): Tyler McCann 74, Clay Vieth 77, Trevor Berry 79, Mark Drake 80, Kyle Hackett 85, Trevor McCann 86

XAVIER (318): J.P. King 76, Ben Sagers 79, Rob Thinnes 81, Matt Junge 82, Ben McDermott 84, Jason Beer 88

WASHINGTON (329): Austin Bergstrom 79, Dominic Rodriguez 79, Matt Strand 84, Zach Gothard 87, Jon Landis 87, John Kopec 89

JEFFERSON (346): Zach Denny 84, Colten Jourdan 84, Eric Lehmkuhl 89,   Ben Otis 89, Gavin Williams 89

Trevor Berry shoots 35 for medalist honors

Linn-Mar's Trevor Berry shot an even-par 35 for medalist honors Thursday at Jones Park, but Jefferson pulled out the team win by one shot over the Lions in a Mississippi Valley Conference boys golf meet.

Jefferson finished with 156, followed by Linn-Mar's 157. Iowa City High had 161 and Prairie 163.

Eric Lehmkuhl shot a 37 and Mitch Willems a 38 to lead Jefferson to its third meet win in the last three weeks and fourth of the season.

"Considering we are playing three kids who never saw varsity action last year, we feel very good about our regular season," Jefferson Coach Steve Koepke said. The J-Hawks were 13-1 in nine-hole meets, 28-19 in MVC competition and 42-36 overall.

Mark Drake shot a 39 for Linn-Mar. The Lions closed out the regular season with a 52-26 record.

Brooks Kehoe's 39 led Prairie. The Hawks' regular-season mark is 28-32.

District meets are Tuesday. Jefferson and Linn-Mar are at Cedar Falls and Prairie is at Eldridge.

JEFFERSON QUADRANGULAR

(Jones Golf Course, par-35)

Teams - 1. Jefferson 156, 2. Linn-Mar 157, 3. Iowa City High 161, 4. Prairie 163

Medalist - Trevor Berry (LM) 35

JEFFERSON (156): Eric Lehmkuhl 37, Mitch Willems 38, Zach Denny 40, Gavin Williams 41

LINN-MAR (157): Trevor Berry 35, Mark Drake 39, Tyler McCann 41, Kyle Hackett 42

IOWA CITY HIGH (161): Grant Simpson 39, Trent Bedford 40, Zach MacMillan 41, Coale Cooper 41

PRAIRIE (163): Brooks Kehoe 39, Mitch Wagner 40, Colyn Snyder 41, Mitch Lorenz 43