Western Dubuque overcomes slow start with strong finish to earn Class 4A state golf berth

PEOSTA — Western Dubuque golf coach Ben Wilson is a math teacher by trade.

He can teach a thing or two about psychology as well.

As the Bobcats struggled at the start Monday, he offered some advice to relax them and relieve any stress.

“I said we were out of it and that some teams were playing really well,” Wilson said. “I downplayed our chances. I told them not to worry about their scores. Just see what they can do.”

Words of wisdom worked wonders. Western Dubuque shot 314 on its home course of Thunder Hills Country Club and placed third at the Class 4A district meet, joining top-ranked Cedar Falls and Dubuque Wahlert as state qualifiers. Cedar Rapids Kennedy’s Reid Hall tied for third and earned an individual state berth.

The Bobcats advanced to state Friday and Saturday at Elmcrest Country Club in Cedar Rapids. It is their first appearance at the championship event in Wilson’s nine years as head coach.

“There were some good teams that felt they had a shot,” Wilson said. “We played poorly at the start. To their credit, they buckled down and ground out some pretty good rounds, especially at the end.”

All four scorers shot 39 or better on the back nine, confirming Wilson’s point. Tyler Skrtich led the way with 76. Brock Wilson, who was an individual qualifier last season, followed with 78. Jackson Skrtich added 79, while Jackson Webber rounded out the scoring with an 81.

The Bobcats graduated accomplished golfers each of the last two seasons. They continued to progress along with the season and scored much better the last half of the season. So much for a “rebuilding” year.

“We knew we had some good talent,” Wilson said. “The guys took that as a challenge.”

Cedar Falls and Wahlert actually tied for the best team score, shooting 305. The Tigers claimed the team title with a 79-83 edge for better fifth-player score. Cedar Falls’ Owen Sawyer and Dubuque Hempstead’s Wil Sigwarth tied for best score at 72 with Sawyer winning a cardback tiebreaker for medalist honors.

Hall, a junior, reached state for the third straight time. He carded birdies on the ninth and 12th holes, going out and in with 37 for a 74 total.

Xavier advances to state

Cedar Rapids Xavier was slated to host this year’s 4A fall state golf tournament. If you have to be there, might as well play, too.

The Saints placed third at Monday’s district at Glynn’s Creek Golf Course in Long Grove. They posted a 303 to earn their eighth trip to state in the last 11 seasons. Co-host Pleasant Valley won the team title with 293, two strokes better than runner-up Southeast Polk.

Xavier produced a balanced team effort. Charlie and Grant Allen each shot 39 on the front and 37 on the back for 76. Senior Ryan Schmit capped the scoring with 78.

“Knowing you’re hosting (state) on the course these boys basically grew up on will always put a little extra pressure on a team,” Xavier Coach Tim O’Brien said. “They handled it well, posting five scores in the 70s.”

Quincey Johnson paced the Saints with a 1-over 73 to place fifth overall. Pleasant Valley’s Sam Johnson was medalist with 1-under 71. Johnson continued his recent good play into the postseason, receiving a boost from his preparation over the weekend.

“Quincey has been coming on strong as he was the second-lowest score for the Saints to finish the regular season,” Xavier Coach Tim O’Brien said. “On Saturday, in our Glynn’s Creek practice round, he shot 1-under 71, so he picked up where he left off from two days ago after starting the day plus-2.”

The two-day state event begins Friday with the final of two rounds Saturday.

Class 4A districts

AT PEOSTA

(Thunder Hills Country Club, par 71)

Teams – 1. Cedar Falls 305*, 2. Dubuque Wahlert 305, 3. Western Dubuque 314, 4. C.R. Prairie 317*, 5. Linn-Mar 317*, 6. C.R. Jefferson 318, 7. Iowa City Liberty 320, 8. C.R. Kennedy 321, 9. Iowa City High 325. 10. Central DeWitt 326, 11. Dubuque Senior 327, 12. Dubuque Hempstead 338, 13. Mason City 348, 14. Waterloo West 369, 15. Waterloo East 376.

State team qualifiers – Cedar Falls, Dubuque Wahlert, Western Dubuque

*-Won tiebreaker with best fifth-player score.

Individuals – 1. Owen Sawyer (CF), 72, 2. Will Sigwarth (DH), 72, 3. (tie) Patrick Fitzgerald (DW), Ben Dolter (DW) and Reid Hall (CRK), 74.

State individual qualifiers – Sigwarth (DH), Hall (CRK)

C.R. PRAIRIE (317): Tanner Wachtl 77, Payton Burns 79, Ashton Carmer 80, Jace Rickertsen 81

LINN-MAR (317): Caden Postma 76, Matthew Buse 78, Christian Cloyd 81, Carter Bond 82

C.R. JEFFERSON (318): Jacob Strain 76, Logan Augustine 80, Landon Augustine 81, Adam Panoch 81

I.C. LIBERTY (320): J.J. Grimm 77, Tate Brunk 77, Braden O’Connor 83, Ryan Schmierer 83

C.R. KENNEDY (321): Hall 74, Leo Koester 82, Collin Kinne 82. Brody Gilkison 83

CITY HIGH (325): Ethan Nace 78, Jake Mitchell 79, Jack Rogers 81, Nicholas Meredith 87

AT LONG GROVE

(Glynn’s Creek Golf Course, par 72)

Teams – 1. Pleasant Valley 293, 2. Southeast Polk 295, 3. C.R. Xavier 303, 4. North Scott 316, 5. Iowa City West 317, 6. C.R. Washington 321, 7. Davenport Assumption 324, 8. Bettendorf 326. 9. Burlington 335, 10. Davenport Central 343, 11. Muscatine 344, 12. Davenport North 349, 13. Davenport West 358, 14. Clinton 379.

State team qualifiers – Pleasant Valley, SE Polk, C.R. Xavier

Individuals – 1. Sam Johnson (PV), 71, 2. Ethan Blomme (PV), 72, 3. (tie) John Dobbe (NS) and Aaron Estell (SEP), 72, 5. Quincey Johnson (CRX), 73

State individual qualifiers – Dobbe (NS), Keaton Thissen (DA)

C.R. XAVIER (303): Johnson 73, Charlie Allen 76, Grant Allen 76, Ryan Schmit 78

I.C. WEST (317): Owen Larson 75, Cole Collier 79, Dillon Croco 80, Landon Peoples 83, Jack MacLagan 83

C.R. WASHINGTON (321): Ben Blocklinger 76, Brye Brim 78, Luke Toms 80, Preston Haefner 87