The strategy for coach Aaron Elmore and the Stone Memorial High School golf teams before the season began was pretty simple. They wanted to do whatever they could to get the boys and girls teams to this year’s state tournament.
SMHS took the first step in that journey Monday when Stone Memorial won the boys and girls titles at the district tournament. The Panthers and Lady Panthers manhandled the field to take the top spots at the Golden Eagle Golf Course in Cookeville.
“It feels great, and I am really happy for the boys and the girls,” said Elmore after the tournament. “They’ve all put in a lot of work, and I’m just glad to see the results, and really proud of them.
“I think they responded well to the course. We’ve played a few matches there this year, and I think they’re becoming more familiar with it each time. It is not really one of the more difficult courses, but you do have to keep it straight. You can get in trouble if you hit it out of bounds.”
Stone Memorial dominated the field in the tournament. The Panthers shot a blistering team total of 315. Upperman was second at 330, while Pickett County shot 347 and Monterey fired a 350. Cumberland County finished with a 355 and Livingston Academy finished sixth at 376. Clarkrange carded a 413 team total and Jackson County rounded out the scoring at 431.
Parker Beck led Stone with a 68 over 18 holes to also win low medalist honors. Charlie VanWinkle posted a score of 81, while Briggs Lowe shot 82. Colton Harden shot 84 and Evan Moseley fired an 87.
“The bar we set for ourselves is always a 320 team total,” Elmore said. “We’ve done that several times this year, but anytime we can go lower than that, it is a pretty good round for us. We probably need to be in the 307 or 308 range going forward. It is something we think we can do.
“All five of the guys have the potential to make birdies. We’ve seen it all year, whether it is in practice or matches.”
Braden Lee posted an 80 to lead Monterey in scoring. Brayden Reams shot 85 and Hudson Craig had a 91. Hayden Peters finished his round with a 97 and Grayson Phillips rounded out the scoring at 99.
Liam Fuentes shot 81 for Cumberland County and that earned him a spot in the region event as an individual. Colyer Myers had an 87, while Asher Mifflin posted a 92. Boone Buckner carded a 95 and Ryder Flatt had a 104.
“Liam qualified for the region tournament and I will take that,” said Cumberland County Coach Randy Herring. “It seems like the boys have been inconsistent over the last couple of weeks.
“I thought Monterey and Pickett County would be the ones we would have to fight for third place. It just didn’t happen.”
Clarkrange golfers were led by Bryton Swallows with 92. Tucker Capps posted a 105, while Luke Thompson and Brady Sitton fired identical 108s. Matt Norris posted a 113.
“All five of our guys, I have confidence in all of them,” Elmore said. “We absolutely have that potential that we could get low scores from at least four of them.”
The Stone Memorial girls had a little bit more difficult time capturing the district title. Stone finished with a 180, just seven strokes in front of Upperman, which finished with an impressive 187.
Sarah Bass led the golfers with an impressive 79. Molly Bass carded a 101 and Karlie Overly shot 106 over the 18 holes of competition.
“Sarah is going to be Sarah,” Elmore said.
Elmore said Sarah Bass is a real “competitor” and that kind of attitude serves her well as she bids to make a long run in the postseason. He also said it bodes well for other members of the team as they tend to feed off her.
“But we’re getting some good production out of Molly and Karlie. I think we’ve had matches where we’ve used each of their scores,” Elmore said. “So, it’s just we’re still trying to get them to keep going as low as they can, and they’ve definitely made progress. The girls team really had a good day.”
Livingston Academy finished third in the team battle with a 204. Cumberland County fired a 208, while Pickett County shot 218 and Monterey fired a 226. York wrapped up the scoring at 231.
Keira Kelly led Cumberland County with an 18-hole score of 100. Aviree Stewart shot 108. Payton Lewis led Monterey with a 109. Bella Hassler fired a 117 and Sara Wilson shot 121. Sophie Sitton, playing as an individual for Clarkrange, shot 131.
“Both Keira and Aviree qualified for the region tournament and that’s great,” Herring said. “They have improved throughout the season. Aviree shot where I thought she would, but Keira may have been a little high this round. I am really proud of them.”
Now the team’s turn their attention to the region championship which was played Sept. 25 at the Golden Eagle Golf Course.
The state championship is scheduled for Oct. 9-10 in Sevierville.