Hamilton County, Indiana: where great golfers grow
By RICHIE HALL
CARMEL – Guerin Catholic boys golf coach Mark Mathews said his team was “pretty calm” on Wednesday morning, as the Golden Eagles prepared to defend their state championship.
And Guerin Catholic did just that on Wednesday afternoon. In a repeat of last year’s IHSAA state finals, the Golden Eagles held off Westfield to claim their second state title. Guerin Catholic finished with a two-day total of 589, just ahead of the Shamrocks’ 591.
Once the competition was over, the Golden Eagles were in celebration mode. Even senior Jacob Modleski, usually the coolest customer on the golf course, was smiling broadly.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen him that animated, but if I were to look in the mirror, you probably didn’t see me that animated any time before that, either,” said Mathews. “I think I jumped about nine feet in the air, and I’m too old to jump that high.”
Both Guerin Catholic and Westfield scored 298 during the final day of play. The Golden Eagles were able to keep a decent advantage for most of the day, then held off a late charge by the Shamrocks, who took the lead at one point during the last couple holes.
But it would’ve been difficult for any team to overcome the 1-2 punch provided by Modleski and junior Leo Wessel, who finished as individual medalist. Wessel played an outstanding second round, carding a five-under par of 67 on Wednesday. Add that to Wessel’s one-under 71 from Tuesday, and he finished with a total of 138, six under par.
“I’ve been playing well all year,” said Wessel. The University of Cincinnati commit said his strategy for the day was to “try to keep it as clean as possible. And when you find your ‘why,’ you find a way to make it happen. I feel like that was what got me through.”
Wessel was one of two players to play under par in both rounds of the tournament. Leo junior Justin Hicks went one under 71 in his first round, and followed that up with a two under 70 for the second day. Hicks finished in a three-way tie for second along with Modleski and Westview sophomore Silas Haarer, who carded a six-under 66 for his second round. The three runners-up all scored 141, three under par for the tournament.
Wessel began his round with three straight birdies, which turned out to be a familiar experience for him: He won a summer tournament at Prairie View earlier in his career, and he birdied the first three holes in that event as well.
“I think it’s just experience and being in that moment that got me through,” said Wessel, who totaled seven birdies on Wednesday. His birdie on the 18th hole helped to clinch the title.
“I think for Leo, this was a breakout,” said Mathews. “He’s been a very talented player that just missed a putt here, done something there and just never quite posted the number he wanted to post. But I’m really proud of him.”
Modleski finished his second round with five birdies, carding a 74 for his second day. He scored a 67 in the first round, but was able to hang on and help deliver a victory for the team.
“The round I played yesterday, I knew I was in a good position to win individually,” said Modleski. But at the end of the day, you really have to do what’s in the best interest of the team. And a lot of times those are going to be the same thing, like what’s best for you is going to be best for the team.”
Modleski won another honor at the end of the meet: He was named the winner of the Fred A. Keesling Mental Attitude Award by the IHSAA Executive Committee. Modleski, the son of Matt and Dianne Modleski, became the first golfer from Guerin Catholic to win a Mental Attitude Award, and is the second GC athlete to win this school year. He joins Bridget Gallagher, who won the girls cross country award last fall.
“It was just a great tournament,” said Modleski. It was a great way to end the year. We played well. We knew we would have to play well in the state tournament, and we did.”
Wessel and Modleski were both named to the All-State Team at the conclusion of the meet.
The Golden Eagles’ other three golfers – senior Zach Thieme, freshman Eli Wessel and sophomore Owen Nielsen – all had one birdie during their second rounds.
“My boys have a lot of heart,” said Mathews. “It’s a real humble group. They know who they rest their faith on. That’s a pretty cool thing.”
Westfield finished as team runner-up for the third time, which also means the Shamrocks earned their sixth top-two finish at state. Westfield won state titles in 2013, 2014 and 2016.
Westfield finished as runner-up for the second year in a row and had three players make the All-State Team. (Richie Hall)
Sophomore Jake Cesare had the highest individual finish for the Shamrocks, tying for seventh with an even par 144, carding a 71 on the first day and a 74 on the second day. Another sophomore, Will Harvey, tied for 10th place with a 145, going 73-72 over the tournament. Harvey made four birdies on Wednesday, and Cesare had one.
Seniors Alec Cesare, Cam Kooi and Matt Shull all both drained two birdies in the second round. Alec Cesare scored a 149 to tie for 16th place and joined Jake Cesare and Harvey on the All-State team.
“Happy with our boys,” said Westfield coach Josh Bryant. “They competed all the way to the end. We always talk about that the back nine is, you just got to be in position and we were, and it was a fun battle back there.”
Hamilton Southeastern finished third for the second consecutive year, totaling a team score of 600. The Royals scored a 296 for their second day, the lowest score of the second round.
Hamilton Southeastern placed third for the second consecutive year and posted the lowest team score of the second round. (Richie Hall)
“We did not have a good Day 1, but we were able to reset and recover and refocus, and do a whole lot better today,” said HSE coach David Young.
Southeastern was led by senior Cole Starnes and sophomore Kai Warner, who tied for 14th place with two-day scores of 148. Starnes, who drained four birdies on Wednesday, was named to the All-State Team, while Warner made three second-round birdies.
Nate Benson scored a 150 to tie for 18th place, making one birdie on Wednesday. Freshman Mattingly Upchurch had three second-round birdies and senior Lane Zedrick had one.
“Very excited for the guys,” said Young. “They had an amazing season, so glad that we could represent the school and community of Fishers this way.”
Noblesville finished seventh as a team with a score of 303. The Millers dropped 12 strokes from their Tuesday score, moving them up from 11th place.
Junior Alex Peck was Noblesville’s low man with a 152; he made three second-round birdies. Seniors Cooper Claussen and Will Barnes both totaled 153, draining two birdies on Wednesday. Senior Drew Decker also made two birdies in his round.
Noblesville’s Will Barnes represented the Millers at state. (Richie Hall)
“We had a little struggle yesterday starting off, but after that they played fantastic,” said Millers coach Gary Deakyne. “I’m so proud of these kids. We had times when we weren’t sure we could finish seventh in the sectional. And to finish seventh in the state, we’re very, very happy and very, very pleased.”
Carmel had an individual compete at state, and he reached the top 10. Junior Mason Price followed up his remarkable first round (where he made two eagles) with a consistent second round, scoring a 74. Price totaled a 145 for his two-day score, tying him for 10th place and earning him All-State honors.
Carmel’s Mason Price tied for 10th at the state meet. (Richie Hall)
“It was a really good experience,” said Price, who went from not playing on the sectional team last year to making the state podium this year. “It was fun. I don’t really have to prove anything. I knew I was good enough to compete and I just tried to have fun.”
Team scores: Guerin Catholic 291-298=589, Westfield 293-298=591, Hamilton Southeastern 304-296=600, Bloomington South 304-303=607, Evansville North 307-305=612, Zionsville 309-305=614, Noblesville 315-303=618, Leo 318-308=626, Valparaiso 303-323=626, Tipton 309-320=629, Center Grove 313-316=629, Columbus North 310-321=631, Homestead 325-311=636, Floyd Central 323-319=642, Chesterton 320-330=650, Penn 326-336=662, Evansville Memorial 339-328=667, Northridge 355-328=683.
Top 10 individuals: 1. Leo Wessel (Guerin Catholic) 71-67=138, T2. Silas Haarer (Westview) 75-66=141; Jacob Modleski (Guerin Catholic) 67-74=141; Justin Hicks (Leo) 71-70=141, 5. Aidan Gutierrez (Valparaiso) 67-75=142, 6. Brayden Miller (Fairfield) 69-74=143, T7. Maverick Conaway (Tipton) 71-73=144; Happy Gilmore (Bloomington South) 72-72=144; Jake Cesare (Westfield) 71-73=144; T10. Mason Price (Carmel) 71-74=145; Will Harvey (Westfield) 73-72=145.
Other Guerin Catholic scores: Zach Thieme 74-80=154, Eli Wessel 79-77=156, Owen Nielsen 79-80=159.
Other Westfield scores: Alec Cesare 72-77=149, Cam Kooi 77-76=153, Matt Shull 79-81=160.
Southeastern scores: Kai Warner 75-73=148; Cole Starnes 76-72=148, Nate Benson 74-76=150, Mattingly Upchurch 80-75=155, Lane Zedrick 79-78=157.
Noblesville scores: Alex Peck 78-74=152, Cooper Claussen 78-75=153, Will Barnes 78-75=153, Drew Decker 81-79=160, Brady Mangin 85-83=168.