Golf roundup: Alexandria teams win pre-section meets; WCA and Minnewaska boys earn wins

Head coach Tim Zupfer has been ecstatic about the depth of the Alexandria girls golf team this season, and that was certainly the case at the Pre-Section 8AAA meet in Park Rapids on Friday.

Alexandria technically trailed Brainerd for most of the day (the tournament was a shotgun start, and Alexandria and Brainerd didn’t play with one another), but with a solid final stretch, Alexandria earned the team win with a total of 319 strokes.

“We were able to rally over our last four-to-five holes to post the 10-stroke advantage,” Zupfer said. “Throughout our round, we had four different players leading our team in score. Ultimately, Hannah Boraas, with a birdie on her final hole posted our lead score with a 78. All six of our players posted scores that finished ahead of players counting scores on other teams.”

Boraas had two birdies and 10 pars to finish tied for second overall.

“Hannah was a little frustrated with her score but she was very happy with the play of her teammates,” Zupfer said. “Her ball striking was a little off, especially with her wedges. She hit the driver and other irons quite well. She did manage to hit 10-of-14 fairways and 12-of-18 greens in regulation.”

Grace Herzog placed fourth with a score of 79. She had two birdies, which came on her last two holes and guided her to finish with a stroke total under 80.

“She hit 9-of-14 fairways and 8-of-18 greens in regulation and had a season best with only 30 total putts for her round,” Zupfer said.”

Rachel Bowen had a team-high three birdies in her round and a handful of pars as well to finish with a round of 80 and a tie for sixth.

“Rachel was pleased with her round and happy to hit her driver well,” Zupfer said. “She was really happy to birdie the hole following one she had a double-bogey on and she hit 6-of-14 fairways and 7-of-18 greens in regulation.

Aisling O’Connor earned a top-10 finish as well, placing tied for ninth (92). She had nine pars in her round

“Aisling had a steady round,” Zupfer said. “She hit 5-of-14 fairways and 8-of-18 greens in regulation, but was a little disappointed that she was unable to hole a few more putts. She had a slow start to her round, but had a strong finish.”

Rounding out the Alexandria scores, Kennedy Ellingson and Ellie Sticha tied for 14th (along with Willmar’s Kennedy Mara) with rounds of 87.

Ellingson and Sticha both had seven pars on Friday.

“Ellie had a nice start to her round, but had one very rough hole,” Zupfer said. “In addition, she found herself on the proverbial "bogey train" for her final five holes. She was able to hit 8-of-14 fairways and 5-of-18 greens in regulation. Kennedy had an amazing finish to her round. She played her final nine holes in just two strokes over par! Her score of 87 is 11 shots better than her previous personal best score! She was unable to par any of her first nine holes, but parred seven of her final nine holes. She does see some room for improvement, especially with her putting. She hit her tee shots and her approach shots into the greens very well.”

Izzy Olson of Brainerd won the individual title with a score of 72 (even par).

Alexandria hits the course again on Monday and Tuesday for the Central Lakes Conference Championship meet in Willmar.

PRE-SECTION 8AAA MEET TOP-EIGHT TEAM SCORES - 1. Alexandria, 319; 2. Brainerd, 329; 3. Detroit Lakes, 332; 4. Sartell, 351; 5. Buffalo, 357; 6. Moorhead, 358; 7. Becker, 360; 8. Bemidji, 372

Eric Morken / Alexandria Echo Press

Jack Holtz has continued his strong season with a win at the boys Pre-Section 8AAA meet at Rich Spring Golf Course in Cold Spring on Friday.

His win and many other top finishes helped Alexandria win the meet with 298 strokes.

He posted a round of 3-under par (69) with four birdies and 13 pars to win the meet by two strokes over Sartell’s Lance Hamak.

Carver Larson started his round 5-over par through seven holes but went 5-under through the final 11 holes to finish his day at even par and third overall.

Larson had five-straight birdies on holes 10-14.

Braeden Sladek joined Larson and Holtz in the top end with a seventh-place finish. Sladek posted two birdies and 10 pars in his round.

Bralyn Steffensmeier and Will Thornburg tied for 13th overall by posting rounds of 79. Steffensmeier had two birdies and nine pars in his round, while Thornburg had three birdies and eight pars.

Rounding out the Alexandria scores, Gabe Weller tied for 23rd with a round of 81, Weston Nyberg tied for 26th with a score of 82, and Bennett Olsen tied for 30th with a score of 83.

Weller had two birdies and nine pars in the round, while Nyberg had 11 pars and Olsen had nine pars.

Alexandria hosts a meet on Monday, May 16, 2023, at 3:30 p.m. at Alexandria Golf Club.

PRE-SECTION 8AAA MEET TEAM SCORES - 1. Alexandria, 298; 2. Brainerd, 308; 3. Sartell, 311; 4. Willmar, 312; 5. Buffalo, 314; 6. Sauk Rapids-Rice, 329; 7. Becker, 347; 8. St. Cloud Crush, 375

The West Central Area and Minnewaska boys golf teams have been in a tie for first place in the West Central Conference all season long. And both teams won 9-hole meets on Friday.

Minnewaska posted a team score of 158 in Montevideo and edged out WCA by two strokes, but WCA edged out Minnewaska by five strokes (WCA had 155 strokes in Olivia) ahead of Tuesday’s conference championship meet.

“What an effort by our team,” WCA head coach Kraig Hunter said. “Playing well in a rain like that has a lot to do with attitude. Our guys had the right attitude and embraced the tough conditions and placed five guys in the top 17 out of 56 golfers.”

In Montevideo, Minnewaska’s Riley Larson won the individual title with a score of 33 (two under par). He had two birdies and seven pars on the day.

Thatcher Sherlin tied for fifth for Minnewaska with a round of 39 that featured six pars and sophomore Zach Gugisberg tied for 10th with a round of 41 that featured two birdies and a par.

Chase Wacker tied for 21st with a round of 45 and had two pars, while Kody Ward tied for 33rd (47) with a par, and Blake Nelson tied for 37th (48) and had one par. Ethan Peterson posted a round of 54 and tied for 51st.

For WCA, Sam Hanson tied for second (37) and had a birdie and five pars. Marshall Dewey tied for fifth (39) with a birdie and three pars, while Mitch Dewey tied for 10th (41) with five pars. Peyton Hanson tied for 15th (43) with two pars, while Brett Amundson tied for 19th (44) with an eagle and two pars.

Cole Anderson had two pars and tied for 21st (45), and Nick Dulas tied for 51st (54).

In Olivia, Mitch Dewey won the individual title, with a round of 2-under par (34). He had two birdies and seven pars despite heavy rainfall.

“Golf is hard enough to not make a mistake in nine holes, and Mitch did it in the rain,” Hunter said. “He is a competitor and always ready. We had several other good rounds by our guys as well. Marshall and Sam have been very consistent and each had a couple of birdies. Brett Amundson had an eagle. Now they've put themselves in a good position for the conference meet."

Marshall Dewey tied for second (38) and had two birdies and four pars, while Sam Hanson tied for 10th (41) with six pars, and Amundson tied for 13th (42) with a birdie and three pars.

Anderson tied for 15th (43) with five pars, Peyton Hanson tied for 17th (44) with two pars and Dulas tied for 29th (47).

For Minnewaska, Gugisberg and Larson tied for fourth (39). Gugisberg and Larson each had a birdie and four pars.

Sherlin tied for seventh (40) with one birdie and four pars, while Nelson had four pars and tied for 10th (41).

Ward tied for 33rd (48), Wacker tied for 39th (49), and Peterson placed 46th (53).

WCA and Minnewaska play in the final WCC meet of the year on Tuesday at 1 p.m. at Pomme De Terre Golf Club in Morris.

MONTEVIDEO BOYS MEET TEAM SCORES - 1. Minnewaska, 158; 2. WCA, 160; 3. Sauk Centre, 166, 4. Morris, 168; 5. Melrose, 173; 6. Benson, 176; 7. Montevideo, 177; 8. BOLD, 184

BOLD BOYS MEET TEAM SCORES - 1. WCA, 155; 2. Minnewaska, 160; 3. Benson, 169; 4. Morris, 172; 5. Montevideo, 177; 6. Sauk Centre, 178; 7. BOLD, 185; 8. Melrose, 188

Sam Stuve / Alexandria Echo Press

The Minnewaska girls golf team had strong showings a meets in Olivia and Montevideo, as many golfers had top-end finishes.

In Olivia, Annika DeBoer and Ava Kollman tied for first (39) and both had six pars in their rounds.

Arivia DeBoer had two birdies and three pars in her round to finish third (40), while Lexi Barsness tied for fourth (43) with a birdie and three pars.

Anna Kollman and Lillie Ogdahl tied for 12th (51), while Kyra Nelson placed 25th (58).

In Montevideo, the Minnewaska girls won the team meet with 172 strokes (they also had the best team score in Olivia).

Annika DeBoer won the individual title with a round of 40. She had one birdie and three pars.

Arivia DeBoer placed third with a score of 43, and she had an eagle and three pars.

Ava Kollman tied for fourth (44) with a birdie and a par, while Ogdahl and Barsness tied for sixth (45). Ogdahl had a birdie and three pars, and Barsness had a birdie.

Anna Kollman tied for 17th (52) and had an eagle in her round, while Kyra Nelson placed 25th (60).

WCA’s Lexi Hunter also competed in Olivia and Montevideo. She tied for 12th (48) in Montevideo with a birdie and two pars. In Olivia, she tied for seventh with a round of 47.

The final girls WCC meet is also on Tuesday in Morris.