Golf
Takeaways on North, Castle and a pair of podium finishes at boys golf state championship
CARMEL, Ind. — It’s never a bad thing if your season ends at Prairie View Golf Club.
The IHSAA boys golf state championship concluded on Wednesday and with it brought to an end another solid spring in Southwestern Indiana. North and Castle were the lone team representatives on the final week, but the area continues to produce strong results.
This was the case once again at the state championship. Highlighted by a pair of podium finishers, here are the final takeaways of the boys golf season:
North finishes short of the podium: ‘It wasn’t for a lack of effort’
The Huskies had higher expectations with a baseline of reaching the podium. So close.
North finished tied for sixth with Guerin Catholic following back-to-back rounds of 308. The two days were not created equal. The Huskies had a blistering start in the first round and finished well in the second. The middle portions of the tournament hampered their chances.
Starting the final round only four shots back, North finished behind Zionsville (600), Westfield (605), Hamilton Southeastern (606), Noblesville (611) and Center Grove (613).
“It wasn’t for a lack of effort,” said North coach Keith Bagby. “The best group of kids and best group of parents. I know they gave it their best shot. At the end of the days, that’s the most important thing. We built something at North.”
Luke Johnston finished tied for 13th overall following a second-round 74. The Ball State commit played the back nine in 7-over this week but still earned All-State honors. Brody Sorrell (76-78) was tied for 24th, Luke Price (80-76) tied for 32nd and Peyton Butler (76-80) tied for 32nd.
“We’re all brothers,” said Johnston. “It’s definitely not what we wanted, but I’m more than proud of the team. The back nine was definitely my weakness. Next year, I’ll come back strong.”
Daymian Rij, Caleb Schnarr finish the season strong
Southwestern Indiana did not leave empty-handed. The bright spot was a pair of individual performances.
Gibson Southern senior Daymian Rij and Jasper junior Caleb Schnarr both finished in the top 10 at the state championship. Considering the talent level of the field and the difficulty of Prairie View, hats off to both. Fairfield junior Brayden Miller was the individual champion at 5-under 139.
Rij finished in a tie for fifth following a pair of 72s. The IU Indianapolis recruit played mostly mistake-free golf in the final round while playing the final 12 holes in 2-under. The highlight was an eagle at the par-five 13th. With the hole playing straight downwind, he hit a 7-iron from 195 yards to two feet.
“I’ve been striking and putting it really well,” said Rij. “I felt really confident. I’m really happy with how I finished. The last couple of tournaments here in high school were some of the best I had recently.”
Schnarr completed one of the better postseasons in the field. The junior was the only player at Prairie View to earn sectional and regional medalist honors the prior two weeks. The finishing touch was a seventh-place finish (74-72) with eight birdies across two rounds.
Only five of the top 10 return next season. Schnarr could set his sights higher.
“To be playing good this time of the year is always fun,” he said. “I kept putting in the work. You have to trust your game. I’m trying to get back here. It’s always fun as an individual but to bring the team back would be really exciting.”
Peyton Blackard of Gibson Southern finished tied for 39th and also earned All-State honors for his overall season.
Castle views this week as a learning experience
It would be easy to write off the score. The Knights are thinking long-term with this group.
Castle finished 17th in the state finals with rounds of 342-329. The first day admittedly left a young lineup shell-shocked, particularly starting on the more difficult back nine. Day two was closer to the Knights’ expectations with all five breaking 90.
Brayden Lamborne finished tied for 48th overall following a final-round 76. Jacob Eble posted a second 81 to tie for 64th. With four of its starting five returning – only Jack Fiester graduates – just reaching Prairie View was valuable. Castle could build off this appearance with something bigger and better. The top spot locally is up for grabs next year, too.
“Experience is the best teach,” said Castle coach Josh Kain. “We definitely got some experience this week. Hopefully that carry on for next year. Our goals will be a little bit higher than just getting here. We can now focus on being able to compete.”
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