Golf roundup: Alex girls take second at Geneva, Minnewaska boys win Fairmont Invite

The Alexandria girls golf team had a busy weekend as they competed in a meet on Friday in a Minnewaska and then hosted a meet on Saturday at Geneva Golf Club.

Alexandria finished second in the Geneva Invite (Ponds/Marsh) with a team score of 328.

Maple Gold (Maroon) won the meet with a score of 306.

“The girls bounced back nicely on Saturday at Geneva,” Alexandria head coach Tim Zupfer said. “A few minutes on the range with coach Lauren Stockmoe helped many of the players regain their confidence. I was pleased with how we handled the cool and wet conditions. For some of the players, it was their first time playing in the rain.”

Senior Hannah Boraas carded three birdies in her round and finished second with a round of 76 (4-over par).

“Hannah played well,” Zupfer said. “She was a little frustrated with her finish, as she had bogeys on four of her final six holes, but she was pleased to have no three-putt greens.”

With two birdies and eight pars, freshman Ellie Sticha posted a round of 82 and tied for 13th. Bowen finished just behind her, tying for 15th with a round of 83 after posting eight pars in her round.

“Ellie had an excellent round and was pleased to have a good day of ball striking. She had one of her best putting days, with only 30 putts,” Zupfer said. “Rachel actually had a tough start to her round. She really settled down and managed to par eight holes throughout her round. She was really happy to hit her driver "amazingly.” She also had another very good chipping day, converting a number of "up and downs.’”

Rounding out the Alexandria scores, junior Grace Herzog had a round of 87, freshman Cadence Simon had a round of 103, sophomore Haley Srock had a round of 104, and Houska posted a round of 115.

Amelia Morton (Maple Grove Maroon) and Avery O’Donnell (Elk River) tied for first with a score of 74.

In the Minnewaska meet at Minnewaska Golf Club, Alexandria finishes second (358), one spot and one stroke ahead of Minnewaska.

“We had a tough day as a team on Friday at Minnewaska,” Zupfer said. “A number of players had a tough day ball-striking and an even tougher day putting.”

Herzog posted two birdies and five pars on her round and posted a team-best score of 84 (12-over par), while senior Aisling O’Connor finished just behind her at 85 after posting one birdie and eight pars.

Herzog tied for fifth, while O’Connor tied for seventh.

“Grace was very pleased with her ball striking but a little disappointed with her putting,” Zupfer said. “Aisling had a very good round going but got sick late in her round.”

Bowen posted a round of 91 and had six pars, while Sticha posted a round of 98 and had six pars.

Srock posted a round of 101 and had two pars, while Houska had a round of 115 with a birdie.

Elk River won the team meet at Minnewaska (340), led by O’Donnell’s first-place finish (77).

Alexandria is in St. Cloud for a meet on Monday at 3:30 p.m.

GENEVA INVITE TEAM SCORES - 1. Maple Grove Maroon, 306; 2. Alexandria, 328; 3. Elk River, 346; 4. Eden Prairie, 349; 5. Chaska, 350; 6. Maple Grove Gold, 352; 7. Minnewaska, 363; 8. Moorhead, 368; 9. St. Michael-Albertville, 410; 10. Eden Prairie 2, 445; 11. Sauk Rapids-Rice, 498

MINNEWASKA INVITE TEAM SCORES - 1. Elk River, 340; 2. Detroit Lakes, 344; 3. Alexandria, 358; 4. Minnewaska, 359; 5. St. Michael-Albertville, 383; 6. Spring Lake Park, 422

Joe Brown / Forum News Service

At the Minnewaska Invite, sophomore Arivia DeBoer and 8th-grader Annika DeBoer tied for seventh (85) and helped the team finish third.

Annika had one birdie and six pars, while Arivia had eight pars.

With six pars, freshman Ava Kollman posted a round of 89, while sophomore Lexi Barsness posted two pars and a round of 100.

7th-grader Lille Ogdahl posted a round of 108, while 7th-grade Anna Kollman posted a round of 118, and 7th-grader Kyra Nelson posted a round of 130.

At the Geneva Invite, Minnewaska finished seventh with a total of 363.

Arivia DeBoer had a team-best score of 83 after posting nine pars and tied for 15th, while Annika posted a round of 89, posted five pars, and placed 22nd.

Ava Kollman posted a round of 93 with eight pars, while Barsness posted a round of 98 with two pars.

Ogdahl had two pars and a score of 102, while Anna Kollman posted a round of 120.

The Lakers compete in Benson at 10 a.m. and back in Glenwood at 2 p.m. on Wednesday.

Contributed photo by David Drexler

The Minnewaska boys team traveled three and a half hours for a meet on Saturday and saw some success.

Minnewaska earned a team win at the Fairmont Invite with a score of 314, beating out Luverne by 316.

“This is a great tournament for our guys to play in as it gives us an opportunity to compete against teams in our section that we wouldn’t otherwise see during the season,” Minnewaska head coach David Drexler said. “To come away with a first place trophy is great, but more importantly, this was just a fun weekend and a great bonding experience for our team.”

Sophomore Zach Gugisberg tied for third overall with a round of 74 (2-over par), while senior Riley Larson tied for fifth (76), junior Blake Nelson and 7th-grader Thatcher Sherlin tied for 10th with a host of other (82).

Rounding out the scores, Chase Wacker posted a 96, Kody Ward posted a 102, and Ethan Peterson posted a round of 126.

“I’m proud of the work our Lakers have been putting in this year,” Drexler said. “Pretty much every day after practice, our guys are staying after and working on their games. Whether it is time on the practice green, chipping, swinging at the range, or playing a round of golf, they are working on their skills. We’re really starting to see the practice time payoff in shot quality and shot selection.”

Minnewaska competes at home at 10 a.m. and at Benson at 2 p.m. on Wednesday.

FAIRMONT INVITE TEAM SCORES - 1. Minnewaska, 314; 2. Luverne, 316; 3. Marshall, 327; 4. Fairmont, 336; T5. St. Peter, 339; T5. Blue Earth Area, 339; 7. Worthington, 350; 8. Jackson County Central, 360; T9. Pipestone Area, 363; T9. North Union, 363; 11. New Ulm, 368; 12. Redwood Valley, 373

Sam Stuve / Alexandria Echo Press

The Alexandria boys golf team is off and running with its season and has already collected some top finishes.

Alexandria competed at the Lakeville South Invite at Dacotah Ridge Golf Club on Friday and walked away with a second-place finish (594 strokes).

Junior Jack Holtz paced Alexandria with a two-day total of 146 (2-over par, par 72 for 18 holes). Holtz posted six birdies and 21 pars at the invite.

Senior Braeden Sladek tied for 13th with a total of 150. He had six birdies and 20 pars at the tournament.

Juniors Gabe Weller and Bennett Olsen finished just behind Sladek.

Weller tied for 14th (151), while Olsen tied for 16th (152). Weller posted nine birdies and 16 pars, while Olsen had three birdies and 23 pars.

Sophomore Carver Larson posted a score of 154. He posted five birdies and 19 pars.

Junior Bralyn Steffensmeier posted a score of 177 and had 15 pars.

Edina won the team meet with a score of 581.

Eastview’s Joey Rohlwing won the individual title with a total score of 138.

Alexandria competes in a conference meet in Willmar at 3:30 p.m. on Monday.

LAKEVILLE SOUTH INVITE SCORES - 1. Edina, 581; 2. Alexandria, 594; 3. Eastview, 606; 4. Chaska, 615; 5. Hastings, 617; 6. Mounds View, 627; 7. Prior Lake, 630; 8. Lakeville South, 645; 9. Wayzata, 658

Led by a second-place finish by junior Chase Triebenbach, the Osakis boys team tied for fourth with Hutchinson (340) at a New London-Spicer Invite on Friday.

Albany won the 18-team meet with a stroke total of 322.

Triebenbach posted two birdies and 12 pars to finish with a round of 74 (2-over par), while junior Drew Imdieke posted a round of 79 (two birdies and seven pars).

Junior Tyler Baumgartner posted a round of 91; junior Gaven Cimbura posted a round of 96, junior Cody Hjelm posted a round of 108, and 8th-grader Kolbe Kral posted a round of 109.

Osakis began a meet in Paynesville at 9 a.m. on Monday.

NEW LONDON-SPICER TOP-EIGHT TEAM FINISHES - 1. Albany, 322; 2. New London-Spicer, 323; 3. Dassel-Cokato, 336; T4. Osakis, 340; T4. Hutchinson, 340; 6. Paynesville, 343; 7. Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta, 353; 8. Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa, 358.