Warsaw beats Marian by 11 strokes
SOUTH BEND — With conference tournaments next weekend and the state tournament sectionals looming at the end of May, the 62nd Culver Academies Invitational Saturday at Notre Dame’s Warren Golf Course gave teams a chance to have some fun and competition among themselves.
Schools were assigned holes for their five-man teams at the par-71, 6,346-yard Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw masterpiece which has hosted many top tournaments of note, including the 2019 U.S. Senior Open and last year’s Indiana Open. All five players played each hole, with the highest score among the five being thrown out to provide each school a four-man score for that hole. Even if a player’s score didn’t count in the team competition, it counted for his individual card to determine the tournament’s medalist.
Coach Jack Carpenter’s Warsaw Tigers, who were disappointed by their seventh-place showing in Friday’s 88th Uebele Invitational at Beechwood Golf Course in LaPorte, earned the team title as their 308 score was 11 strokes better than Mishawaka Marian and Indianapolis Chatard. South Bend Saint Joseph, which was six strokes better for third place at the Uebele, finished fourth Saturday with its 324 effort.
The Tigers’ sophomore No. 2 Breck
in Christner earned co-medalist honors with Chatard’s No. 1 Colin Kirchessner after both golfers carded four-over 75s on the sunny but chilly day with winds averaging 16 miles an hour and gusting at times over 30. They were one stroke better than Elkhart junior No. 1 Steven Webb. The weather made the Crenshaw-designed greens firm and quick, and the high grasses and bunkers surrounding Coore’s generous fairways ate up more shots than you could have ever imagined.
“I love this tournament for the kids … it’s relaxing,” said Marian coach Alex Stopczynski, “and I love this course — it’s beautiful. And the greens … if you were above the hole in some spots, good luck.”
The Knights had four players within two shots of each other, with sophomore No. 1 John Hahn recording an 83, one stroke better than the efforts of sophomore No. 2 AJ Bishop and senior No. 5 Jacob Padrnos and two better than senior No. 3 Jackson Horvath.
“John had two 7s on his card; if this was a 9-hole match, it’s over,” Stopczynski said of the team format. “Today, the rest of the guys picked him up.”
And so it was on the fun afternoon for most of the players and teams, some of whom had huge galleries of family and friends watching their every stroke while trying to stay warm with blankets and their cheers of encouragement.
Coach Bret Bajdek’s Saint Joseph Huskies, who will battle Marian and Penn next Saturday at Plymouth’s Pretty Lake Golf Club for the Northern Indiana Conference tournament and overall championship, were led by junior No. 1 Thomas Raster’s 78. Sophomore No. 2 Tate Guyton was next at 84.
Host Culver Academies fielded three teams with its No. 1 team finishing fifth 12 strokes behind the Huskies in solo fifth place as junior No. 2 player Kyle Lee led the way with a 79. The Eagles’ best effort, however, was the 78 recorded by Manolo Osorio on the Eagles’ No. 2 team, which finished ninth at 350 trailing sixth-place Goshen (338), seventh-place Elkhart (341) and eighth-place South Bend Adams (349). NorthWood finished 10th in the 16-team field at 353.
First-year coach Chris Arnold’s Red Hawks were led by No. 1 Todd Kauffman’s 85, which edged No. 2 Myles McLaughlin by a stroke and No. 4 Braxten Sheets by two. Coach Todd King’s Lions got an 82 from No. 3 Cameron Miller to go with Webb’s 76. Senior No. 1 Liam Kinney led coach Andy Kern’s Eagles with an 82, the same score shot by Colton Rouch that led coach Phil Ummel’s NorthWood Panthers. Warsaw, Goshen and their Northern Lakes Conference brethren will travel next Saturday to the conference tournament hosted by Northridge at Meadow Valley in Middlebury.