Wuensch, Griffin lead Lakeside to 2nd in 5A
PARAGOULD — Griffin Wuensch and Wil Griffin each shot rounds of 1-over-par 71 on Tuesday to lead Lakeside to a second straight second-place finish in the Class 5A boys’ state golf tournament at the Paragould Country Club.
All five Lakeside golfers shot below 80, but the Paragould Rams were able to take the state championship on their home course. The hosts finished with a team score of 293.
Lakeside was the runner-up at 296. The visiting Rams were followed in the standings by Benton, 301; Jonesboro, 302; Little Rock Christian, 305; and Greenwood, 308.
Jonesboro had won eight consecutive state championships in the smaller Class 6A with only 16 teams. The Arkansas Activities Association’s reclassification for the 201820 cycle bumped all 16 schools in Class 7A in football to 6A in other sports. The 16 6A schools in football then combine with the largest 16 schools in 5A football in other sports to form a new 5A class with 32 teams.
Little Rock Christian won the 5A state championship a year ago by nine strokes ahead of Lakeside at the Hot Springs Country Club. Greenwood and Benton placed second and third, respectively, behind Jonesboro in the 2017 6A tournament.
Wuensch, a senior, and Griffin, a sophomore, tied for fourth place. They were
followed on the team card by the only other senior on the team, Nathan Ahlers, who shot a 76. Junior Carson Garner rounded out the team score with a 78, while freshman Cooper Gordon shot a 79. Gordon led the team with a round of 71 when Lakeside won the 5A-South conference golf tournament on Sept. 18 at the El Dorado Country Club.
Greenwood’s Evan Griffith medaled Tuesday with a 2-under-par 68. Griffith medaled at the 2017 6A tournament and won the 5A-West tournament on Sept. 17 at the Ben Geren Golf Course in Fort Smith.
Benton’s Brendon Little and Chance Matthews each shot a 1-under-69. The rest of the top 11 included Bradley Brotherton, Greenwood, 72; Chase Matthews, Paragould, 72; Josh McNulty, White Hall, 72; Simon McBride, Paragould, 73; Ben Sherman, Jonesboro, 73; and Chase Venn, Little Rock Christian, 73.
Lake Hamilton senior Caleb Dodd carded an 83. Dodd qualified to compete as an individual at state after shooting an 84 in the 5A-South tournament.
The rest of the team standings included Marion, 322; Siloam Springs, 341; El Dorado, 341; Sylvan Hills, 362; White Hall, 375; and Jacksonville, 455.