Knight golfers finish season with 33 wins
The varsity golf team at Tyler Consolidated completed their regular season last week with a record of 33-56-2, and were to participate in the Region I Regional on Monday.
On Sept. 20 the Silver Knights played at the Woodridge Plantation Golf Club in Mineral Wells at the LKC Golf Tournament. The team placed sixth of twelve teams competing: Ritchie County, 317; St. Marys 334; Parkersburg Catholic, 336; Gilmer, 340; Ravenswood, 341; Tyler Consolidated, 348; Wirt, 360; Williamstown, 367; Braxton, 373; Roane County, 379; South Harrison, 381; and Clay, 444.
Tyler Consolidated junior, Dalton Wells made the All-LKC Conference team.
Individual scores for the Silver were: Dalton Wells, 80; Swayde Carpenter, 88; Corey Wells, 89; Tyler LeMasters, 91; and Nate Bolin, 102.
“I was really pleased that we finished as high as we did,” said head coach of the golf team, Joe Griffith. “Dalton Wells had a great round to be honored as part of the All-LKC Conference team. His score was backed up by three other solid scores from Swayde Carpenter, Corey Wells and Tyler Lemasters.”
“With our highest score coming in at 91, we were able to post a decent team score. If we had played just a little better, we might have been able to challenge Ravenswood and Gilmer, but I think that Ritchie is too strong this year for us to have beaten them. St. Marys is also strong, and Parkersburg Catholic was playing on their home course. So all in all, I’m really proud of our team for finishing in the upper half of the pack.”
At the Sistersville Country Club on Sept. 22, the Knights played their final regular season match of the year. The team had their best score of the year, a 165, defeating Magnolia, 160.
Dalton Wells and Corey Wells each turned in low scores of 38 on the day. Carpenter scored 38; Garrison, 45; LeMasters, 47; Bolin, 49; Levi Kissner, 54; Brice Kehrer, 55; Chelsa Thomas, 62; Justin Dennis, 57; Timmy Chichick, 57; and Kyle Eastham, 60.
Three individual golfers from Paden City High School participated in the match with Doug Shepherd scoring the lowest on the day with a 52. Kyle Postlethwait scored 54, and Sabrina Midcap, 56.
The Paden City golfers participated in their Regional at Williams Country Club in Weirton on Monday.
“Our team score of 160 was the best that we have had this year, and the best that we’ve had for the past several years,” the coach said. “It has been quite a while since we’ve had three players card scores in the 30’s, so that was a big help for us. Dalton and Corey were both just four over par, and Swayde had his lowest finish in a match at five over par. Those are nice low scores, especially on our annual Parents’ Night match-up with Magnolia.”
Being the last match for the majority of the team’s seniors, Griffith had something to say about each of them.
“Ethan Garrison finished his four-year career with a round of 45 to fill out the scoring for the team total,” he said. “His game has really come together here toward the end of the season. He has been a co-captain the past two years and I appreciate all his behind-the-scenes work.”
“Tyler Lemasters had a 47 on the evening. He is our other co-captain in his fourth year on the team. His scores over the past couple of weeks have qualified him as the only senior to go on to play in the regional tournament next week.”
“Nate Bolin finished at 49. He has been out for golf for the past three years, and his game has been very good lately. I can tell that he has really enjoyed the game and will continue to play with his family in the years to come.”
“Levi Kissner came in next with a round of 54 to end his four years on the team. He probably has the smoothest swing of anyone on the team. Levi and Nate have both overcome the problem of living more than 20 miles from the golf course. They are both fine quality young men that I will miss having on the team next year.”
“Brice Kehrer finished with 55, but he’s become a better golfer than that score shows. I’m glad that he decided to join the team for the past three years, even though he has to drive from New Martinsville to the course.”
“Our final senior is Chelsa Thomas, who finished off her career with a round of 62, also higher than her normal score. Out of the six seniors, Chelsa is the one who has made the most improvement in her time on the team. As a freshman she seldom could hit the ball more than 20 or 30 yards, but now her drives are much longer. She is the only female golfer in the history of Tyler Consolidated, and I am glad that she stayed with us all four years.”
“This group of six seniors has been a special part of the past four years,” Griffith said. “Coach Bob Wilt took them under his wing and worked with them when they were freshmen. They have each come a long way since the first practice that they showed up, and I will certainly miss them next year.”
The Silver Knights began Regional play on Monday at the Green Hills Country Club against some very fine teams such as Ritchie County and Point Pleasant. “Our team score will probably not qualify us for the state tournament, since Ritchie and Point Pleasant are both strong this year and Ravenswood will be playing on their home course,” the coach said. “But perhaps an individual might have a good day and qualify as a medalist. Dalton and Corey have a legitimate chance with a solid round; Swayde and Tyler would need to have very good rounds to be in the hunt.”
“This is the first year where we will only play four and count three scores for regionals. It used to be that we had five players and counted four scores. So for many teams-especially the smaller schools, who have fewer students from which to draw their players-only counting the three low scores will change the dynamics of how team scores will stack up on Monday.”
On Monday the Knight golfers were to participate in the Region I Regional at the Green Hills Country Club.