Conference 21A Golf Tourney

Posted: September 25, 2015
From Byrd Newspaper reports

HARRISONBURG — With defending Group 4A state champion Brett Loy winning individual honors, the Sherando golf team qualified for its first regional tournament since 2012 by placing second in the Conference 21A golf tournament Thursday at the Heritage Oaks Golf Course.

Loy recorded a 4-over-par 74 to win the six-team tournament by three strokes over Woodgrove’s Alex Price.

The Wolverines won the team title with a four-player score of 311, nine better than Sherando (320). Both teams qualify for the 4A West Region tournament, which will take place on Oct. 6 at the same location.

James Wood (third with a 328), Harrisonburg (fourth with a 340), Millbrook (fifth with a 349) and Handley (sixth with a 357) will each send at least one individual to the regional tournament. (The top six individuals outside of the top two qualify.)

James Wood qualified Hunter Hall (79), Ben Marsh (81) and Tyler Mounts (84), Handley qualified Colleen Connolly (80) and Millbrook qualified Ryan McCarty (84).

The rest of Sherando’s counting scores came from Jonah Pearson (81), Mason Scott (82) and Luke Conner (83).

Despite having a state championship to his name, Loy had never won a conference tournament until this year. He took second in the Conference 21 tournament each of his first two years.

“It means a lot,” Loy told the Daily News-Record. “I haven’t won conference before and that was a goal coming in. I got off the tee really well and didn’t miss too many fairways.”

Sherando coach Rob Wright said in a phone interview that it was difficult to keep balls in Heritage Oaks’ narrow fairways Thursday. (Heritage Oaks also has those fairways lined with oak trees.) Wright said another challenge was having to start on the more difficult back nine, which made it hard to find a groove. (The Conference 29 golf tournament also took place Thursday, and those golfers started on the front nine.)

Still, the Warriors found a way.

“It wasn’t pretty,” Wright said. “But at the end of the day we get to keep swinging. It’s a sign of a good team when you don’t do your best, but you still get to move on.”

Wright was particularly pleased by Conner, whose scores normally don’t count for Sherando because of the consistently strong scores posted by Loy, Pearson, Scott and Josh Hogue.

“Luke Conner played great. Josh got off to a rough start, so we knew we were going to need someone to step up,” said Wright (Hogue shot a 49 on his first nine holes before rebounding with a 38 on his last nine). “The guys were really appreciative of what he did and were hugging him afterward.

“The guys know they’re fortunate to be moving on. We’ll just go to work and prepare for regionals.”

Also for James Wood, Doug Watkins, who nearly qualified for regionals but was eliminated in a playoff, shot an 84. Millbrook’s Joe Eisenhauer and Amanda Hayton each shot 87s. Handley’s Nick Mitchell recorded an 86 and Kyle Kremer had an 87.