White River girls third, EHS boys No. 8 at state golf

Sixteen local prep golfers – 10 from White River and six from Enumclaw High – joined the elite field last week who competed in the various state championship tournaments.

The two-day state tourneys, for all classifications, were contested Tuesday and Wednesday, May 21-22. Golfers from White River and Enumclaw traveled to Spokane for the end-of-season experience.

Here’s a look at how everyone fared.

WHITE RIVER GIRLS

The best overall showing was by the White River High School girls, who placed third in the Class 2A team standings. With a pair of golfers playing their way into Top 10 status, the Hornet girls trailed only 2A champion Sammamish and second-place Bellingham.

Four White River girls had advanced to state competition at MeadowWood Golf Course.

Leading the way in Spokane was Brooke Gelinas. She carded a 74 on the first day of the tourney, leaving her tied atop the leaderboard. She came back with a round of 80 on Day 2 to finish at 154, placing fourth overall in the field of 80 golfers.

Teammates Brooke Mahler and Emma McGregor also made the cut after the first day of play, qualifying for 36 holes of play. Mahler opened with an 81 and was tied for ninth place following the first round; she added an 84, finishing with 165 and in a tie for 10th. McGregor shot a Day 1 92, added a 93 the second day to finish at 185 and tied for 30th.

Also qualifying for the Class 2A state tourney was Ashley Buchholz. She missed the cut by shooting 115 on opening day and did not advance.

ENUMCLAW BOYS

The EHS boys team had five golfers in the Class 4A tournament, staged at The Creek at Qualchan, and the Hornet quintet combined to bring home eighth-place honors.

Topping the team effort was Ty Albrecht, who fired a round of 75 on the first day, then came back with a 77; his 152 left him tied for 17th in the 4A field of 71 players. Albrecht’s opening round had him sitting inside the Top 10.

Jaeger Christian posted back-to-back rounds of 80 and his 160 total left him 40th. Cameron Serba started with a 78 and added a second-round 83, finishing at 161 and tied for 41st place.

Tristen Nichols started with an 83, added a round of 84 and finished at 167, tied for 55th place. Wyatt Bort posted scores of 91-98-189 and was 71st.

The state showing indicated a promising future for the boys team. Albrecht, Christian, Nichols and Bort are juniors and Serba is a sophomore.

WHITE RIVER BOYS

The White River program looked good heading to Spokane, having qualified six golfers for the state tourney at Liberty Lake Golf Course.

But things didn’t go as planned and all six were limited to 18 holes of golf, having failed to make the Day 1 cut.

Final scores were: Joe Flanigan, 87 (missing the cut by just two strokes); Lane Maras, 88; AJ Mills, 94; Clay Cashman and Drew Thompson, both 98; and Tanner Penrose, 99.

ENUMCLAW GIRLS

The EHS girls program has just a lone representative, Emma Murphy, qualify for the Class 4A tournament.

Playing at Hangman Valley Golf Course, she finished Day 1 with a round of 94. It took a score of 92 or better to advance to the second day.

The EHS boys finished eighth in the Class 4A tourney, From left are coach Dave Weston, Jaeger Christian, Wyatt Bort, Tristen Nichols, Colton Willson, Cameron Serba, Ty Albrecht, and coach Tony Binetti. Submitted photo