As the boys golf sectionals finished up in Indiana on Monday, Carmel had probably the closest sectional victory of all.
The Greyhounds needed a playoff to beat Zionsville to win the Westfield sectional Monday at Ulen Country Club in Lebanon. Both No. 2-ranked Carmel and No. 5 Zionsville finished with team scores of 295. Their fifth-man scores were identical, too, with both schools’ golfers carding a 78.
So, the teams went to a playoff, and the Greyhounds triumphed on the second hole. With that, Carmel claimed its 15th sectional championship and first since 2017.
Sam Booth was the Greyhounds’ low man with a 72, giving him fifth place individually, with Joe Armfield right behind him by scoring a 73. All five of the Carmel players finished in the 70s, and made at least two birdies. Booth had the most with five, followed by Jared Michael with four, Joe Armfield and Owen Sander with three each and Shoji Fujita with two.
No. 1-ranked Guerin Catholic placed third with 299 and will join Carmel and Zionsville at Thursday’s Lake Central regional, which will be played at Sandy Pines Golf Club in Demotte. The Golden Eagles’ Jacob Modleski was the individual medalist, winning a playoff after carding an even-par 70. Modleski had three birdies in his round.
Connor McNeely was next in line with a 74, including two birdies. Christian Hein and Leo Wessel both made one birdie.
Westfield, ranked No. 8, placed fourth with a 306. The Shamrocks took all three individual qualifying spots: Hunter Cook scored a 71 to take third place individually, followed by Alec Cesare with 74 and Nolan Hall with 79.
Cesare led the birdie count with three, followed by Cook and Timmy Leonard with two each. Hall and Colin Nixon both made one birdie.
University scored a 398 to place seventh. Ben Ewer led the Trailblazers with an 88, making two birdies.
Sheridan had two players at the sectional. Tyler Garner scored 114 and Grant Ferren carded a 121.
AT ULEN COUNTRY CLUB
Team scores: Carmel 295 (won in playoff), Zionsville 295, Guerin Catholic 299, Westfield 306, Western Boone 352, Lebanon 354, University 398, Frankfort 412, Bethesda Christian 440, Sheridan inc.
Medalist: Jacob Modleski (GC) 34-36=70, won in playoff.
Carmel scores: Sam Booth 37-35=72, Joe Armfield 39-34=73, Shoji Fujita 38-37=75, Patrick Michael 38-37=75, Owen Sander 43-35=78.
Other Guerin Catholic scores: Connor McNeely 36-38=74, Christian Hein 38-37=75, Andrew White 41-39=80, Leo Wessel 44-42=86.
Westfield scores: Hunter Cook 34-37=71, Alec Cesare 41-33=74, Nolan Hall 36-43=79, Timmy Leonard 44-38=82, Colin Nixon 43-40=83.
University scores: Ben Ewer 48-40=88, Andrew Dickerson 50-50=100, Quinn Dryden 52-52=104, Nick Boschee 51-55=106, Austin Clark 57-54=111.
Sheridan scores: Tyler Garner 56-58=114, Grant Ferren 62-59=121.
On Monday, Fishers got to add another sport to the “first-ever sectional championship” list.
This time, it was boys golf. The No. 15-ranked Tigers claimed their inaugural trophy in that sport with a close win at the Noblesville sectional, which took place at Fox Prairie Golf Course. Fishers edged out No. 7-ranked Hamilton Southeastern by one stroke, 307-308, for the title.
“We knew it was going to be close,” said Tigers coach Matt Mozingo. “They had our number pretty much all season. We got them one time, they got us three or four. It’s a good, solid rivalry and we were fortunate to come out on top today.”
Both teams also advanced to Thursday’s Muncie Central regional, which takes place at The Players Club in Yorktown. They will be joined by Tipton, which finished third by carding a 314. In addition, two Noblesville players qualified for the regional as individuals.
Fishers delivered consistent scores among its five golfers. Conner McMillan carded a 73, which gave him third place individually. Ryan Witt, the Tigers’ No. 4 golfer, helped out with a 74. McMillan made one birdie, while Witt had two.
“So proud of Ryan today,” said Mozingo. “He struggled with his putter most of the year and was hanging in the 79, 80 area, so he came back with a 74 today and was just awesome.”
Matthew Albright’s round of 79 included two birdies, while Will Schade’s 81 included one birdie. Matt Wolf also carded an 81.
Southeastern’s Lane Zedrick was the individual champion, finishing with a one-under par 70. The sophomore totaled three birdies in his round, which he said was his best round of the season and that he played “pretty well.”
“I definitely have been working to get better,” said Zedrick. “I’ve been on the edge of going under and today was the day.”
Cole Starnes was right behind Zedrick with a 72, giving him individual runner-up honors. Starnes also had three birdies in his round. Tyler Lacy carded an 83, with one birdie.
Noblesville finished fourth as a team by scoring 320. The Millers’ individual advancers are Will Peck with 77 and Drew Decker with 78. Lapel’s Corbin Renihan took the third qualifying spot with an 80.
Perkins and Alex Peck (83) both totaled three birdies for Noblesville, while Decker and Rory Bushong (82) both had one.
Hamilton Heights finished fifth as a team with 347. Garrett James was the Huskies’ low man with an 82. Ethan Millsaps had two birdies, while James, Lance Jones and Nathan Cox all had one.
AT FOX PRAIRIE
Team scores: Fishers 307, Hamilton Southeastern 308, Tipton 314, Noblesville 320, Hamilton Heights 347, Lapel 353, Pendleton Heights 357, Frankton 395, Daleville 398, Elwood 403, Anderson 416, Alexandria 431.
Medalist: Lane Zedrick (HSE) 35-35=70.
Fishers scores: Conner McMillan 37-36=73, Ryan Witt 37-37=74, Matthew Albright 44-35=79, Will Schade 38-43=81, Matt Wolf 40-41=81.
Other Southeastern scores: Cole Starnes 40-32=72, Tyler Lacy 41-42=83, Thomas Reising 42-41=83, Nate Benson 47-38=85.
Noblesville scores: Will Perkins 37-40=77, Drew Decker 38-40=78, Rory Bushong 40-42=82, Alex Peck 45-38=83, Brady Mangin 40-43=83.
Heights scores: Garrett James 43-39=82, Nathan Cox 44-43=87, Ethan Millsaps 41-46=87, Vincent Harley 48-43=91, Lance Jones 46-46=92.