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Warriors are regional champs

Steve Yingling

STATELINE – Jonathan Szendrey had his priorities in order on Wednesday afternoon.

The Whittell High School junior golfer accepted the lowest team position so he could delay his Northern 2A-1A regional tournament tee time and take an advance placement calculus test.

Szendrey hustled to Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course to make his 12:40 p.m. tee time, then proceeded to capture top medalist honors – the third Warrior in succession to do so.



“I was just worried about getting here,” he said.

Two of Szendrey’s teammates were his closest pursuers. Tyler Fairbank, the defending regional champion, posted an early 85 that looked like a winner until Szendrey finished. Whittell junior Geoff Caliger was third with an 86.



With the other seven teams unable to shoot a score lower than 90, the Warriors romped to the regional team championship. Team scores were: Whittell 438, North Tahoe 477, Battle Mountain 499, Hawthorne 508, Wells 589, Sage Ridge 597, Rite of Passage 569 and Jackpot (incomplete).

Whittell, North Tahoe and Battle Mountain advance to next week’s Nevada 2A state tournament in Needles.

“I’m proud of the way we’ve come back after winning (state) last year and losing three of our top guys,” said coach Steve Maltase, whose Warriors won their sixth regional championship in the past eight years. “Our young guys have really done a good job this year of showing consistency and improving week after week.”

Szendrey didn’t begin his round like a champion. His first two shots found the water on the first hole.

But Szendrey steadied his game with a 10-foot birdie on the second hole and finished with an 8-over 44 on the front nine. He tore up the back nine with a 40 – including a dramatic finish at 18.

Needing to make birdie on No. 18 to take the lead, Szendrey gave himself a good opportunity. His third shot settled to within six feet of the cup, and he calmly drained the putt for the one-shot win.

“I just hope they don’t throw me in the lake,” Szendrey said.

The only players to jump in the lake on this chilly spring day were from Wells. Wells’ six participants kept their word by taking a dip in the lake after failing to break 100.

Fairbank shot the low score on the front nine with his 40 but a quadruple-bogey seven on the par-3 12th kept him from first place.

“I just fell apart. I had a couple of bad holes,” he said. “I wasn’t making many putts.”

Caliger was the Warriors’ biggest surprise of the day. After missing the past several matches, he executed his best round ever at Edgewood with his 86.

“I wasn’t expecting to do this good. My putting was really on today,” Caliger said. “That’s what helped me out best, because some tee shots went left and right. But when I got on the green, I was able to do single putts, double putts.”

A 30-foot birdie putt on No. 18 capped his round of 86.

More importantly, Caliger was able to erase memories of the 112 he shot at last year’s regionals in Elko.

“When I was on the range, I was shaking a little bit, because I was nervous for zone,” Caliger said. “This year I pulled through. I’m just excited to go to Vegas for state.”

Rounding out the top five were North Tahoe’s Travis Boerner in fourth with a 90 and Whittell’s Trevor Fairbank fifth at 91. Whittell’s Michael Koskin tied for sixth with a 92, and the Warriors didn’t need T.J. Kolesnik’s 94, which left him tied for ninth.

Northern 2A-1A Regional Golf Tournament Results

Wednesday

At Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course

Team Scores

1. Whittell 438, 2. North Tahoe 477, 3. Battle Mountain 499, 4. Hawthorne 508, 5. Wells 589, 6. Sage Ridge 597, 7. Rite of Passage 659, 8. Jackpot (incomplete score).

Individual scores

1. Jonathan Szendrey, Whittell, 84; 2. Tyler Fairbank, Whittetll, 85; 3. Geoff Caliger, Whittell, 86; 4. Travis Boerner, North Tahoe, 90; 5. Trevor Fairbank, Whittell, 91; 6. (tie) Michael Koskin, Whittell, 92; Alec Griffith, North Tahoe, 92; Foster Kenton, Hawthorne, 92; 9. (te) T.J. Kolesnik, Whittell, 94; Kevin Scardigli, North Tahoe, 94; Trevor Jones, Battle Mountain, 94.

12. Dan Longo, North Tahoe, 97; 13. Ty Whitehead, Battle Mountain 98; 14. (tie) Jake Winters, Battle Mountain, 99; Mike Hugill, Jackpot, 99; 16. (tie) Matt Newgard, Battle Mountain, 100; Stephen Powell, Hawthorne, 100; 18. Ryan Moschetti, Wells, 100; 19. (tie) Tyler Cook, Sage Ridge, 102, Dakota Baker, Hawthorne, 102; Brandon Jackson, Hawthorne, 102; 22. (tie) Craig Munro, North Tahoe, 104; Shawn Pearson, Wells, 104; 24. Sean Lovely, North Tahoe, 107; 25. (tie) Tony Wallock, Battle Mountain, 108; Jesse Robinson, ROP, 108; 27. (tie) Jake Greenhalgh, Battle Mountain, 109; Brandon Arner, Sage Ridge, 109; 29. Alex Hester, Jackpot, 111; 30. Zach Parsons, Hawthorne, 112.

31. James Neff, Wells, 117; 32. Shan Powar, 121; 33. Ab Barretto, ROP, 127; 34. Harris, Chadwick, Sage Ridge, 131, 35. Ivan Kelley, Wells, 133; 36. (tie) Mason Brensel, Wells, 134; Spencer Helms, Sage Ridge; Willie Archie, ROP, 134; 39. Carson Makin, Wells, 138; 40. Brian Imel, ROP, 143.

41. Mike Hahnay, ROP, 147; 42. Miguel Mendez, Jackpot, 156; 43. Antonio Twiggs, ROP, 200.


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