James Wood dominates at district mini tournament

FRONT ROYAL — The James Wood High School golf team continued its hot streak on Tuesday.

The Colonels won first place in the Class 4 Northwestern District mini tournament with a four-person score of 303 on the white and red nines, a par-71 combination, at the Shenandoah Valley Golf Club on Tuesday. They finished 41 strokes ahead of Liberty, the second-place team.

James Wood’s target score for Tuesday was 305, so when head coach David Oates tallied up his team’s 303 score, he said he was pleased.

On an individual level, the Colonels had the top three scores in Tuesday’s match, with senior Brayden Rockwell leading all golfers with a 2-over par 73.

“I think Rockwell didn’t hit one fairway today,” Oates said. “He was all over the place, and I think he still posted a 2-over par.”

Rockwell said that he had two birdies on the day but still felt like he put himself in tough positions and could’ve had a better score.

“I did really good hitting into the greens; I think I hit 14 greens, but off the tee, today was not good,” said Rockwell. “I hit absolutely no fairways. I was all over the place: in the trees, other holes. It was bad off the tee, but I was able to hit the greens and make the putts when I needed to.”

Seniors Ian Longo and Jake Bursey were both right behind Rockwell, with a 3-over par 74 and a 5-over par 76, respectively. Senior Lauren Van Horn hit an 80 for the fourth and final score for James Wood.

“To have me, Jake and Brayden at one, two and three is pretty cool,” Longo said.

James Wood’s performance on Tuesday comes one day after it placed second out of 12 teams at the Park View tournament at Algonkian Golf Course. In Monday’s tournament, the Colonels shot a four-player score of 315 and were led by Rockwell, who scored a 2-over par 74 to tie for the fourth-lowest individual score.

Handley, which finished third with a 345-team score, had three golfers shoot under 90 on Tuesday. Junior Finn Slaughter and his brother Hudson Slaughter, a freshman, both finished with an 83 for the Judges’ two lowest scores. The Slaughter brothers are both new additions to Handley’s team this year. Senior Nash Sharma finished with a 17-over par 88 and senior John Casella rounded it out with a 20-over par 91.

Sherando finished with a four-person score of 353. Senior Jackson Hepner led the Warriors with an 8-over par 79, which was the fourth-lowest individual score of the day across all participating teams. As for the other top Sherando golfers, senior Timmy Hill had an 88, sophomore Jay Sluss had a 92 and senior Landon Rust had a 94.

Millbrook had the highest team score of the day, with a 367. Tyler Learn finished with an 11-over par 82 for the Pioneers’ lowest score of the afternoon. Freshman Dylan Reich scored a 93 for the squad’s second-lowest score. Sophomore Jude McGee and junior Anthony Gelormine scored a 95 and 97, respectively.

Liberty’s two best scores came at the hands of Eli Collins and Jackson Carder, who shot an 83 and 84, respectively. Additionally, Ashton Crouch had an 85, and Preston Lamot scored a 92.

Handley will be back in action on Thursday at Bryce Resort Golf Course. Millbrook, Sherando and Clarke County will also compete on Thursday but at the Blue Ridge Shadows Golf Club. James Wood’s next match is Aug. 19.

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