By Kent Dolezal
by Kent Dolezal
Thursday, May 20
ANACONDA Nick Obie finished tied for fifth individually with a two-day score of 154, leading an all-freshman Blue Pony boys squad to a third-place finish at this years Class A state tournament.
That is very, very admirable, said Havre coach Keith Evenson. The last team to dominate as a class is Laurel, and they are all seniors this year. Everyone down there has turned their head to Havre in awe.
Laurel players finished 1-2-3 Wednesday to win their third straight state Class A boys golf title, while Mandy Gunville of Billings Central won the girls individual title in a playoff.
A lost ball penalty on the final hole of the state tournament three years ago stopped the Locomotives from winning four straight titles. Polson beat them by one stroke.
Laurel also broke its own record for a state tournament score with its 589 total. Last year Laurel won with a 593 score.
Brad Fox finished second at 143 and Brett Woods was third at 151, while teammate Jud Norman tied for fifth.
Casey Lozar of Polson tied for third at 151, and Polson had a team score of 623. Havre was third at 628.
Havres Kevin Harada with a 156 ended in ninth place to give the Blue Ponies two all-staters.
On the girls side, Gunville beat Brianne Woods of Laurel on the first hole of a sudden death playoff. Both finished regulation play with a two-day score of 176.
Jacquie Henthorn of Belgrade finished third at 180, followed by Kelsey Jensen of Whitefish at 181.
Shanda Lammerding was Havres top female performer with her two-round 187. Lisa Wagner compiled a 213, Katie Springer a 207, Tiffany Obie a 222, and Jessica Sande a 233.
The girls didnt have the tournament that they wanted, Evenson said. They were consistent. No one had a really bad day, but no one had a really great day either.
The Whitefish girls won their second straight state title with 746 points, followed by Billings Central at 754 and Miles City with 770.
Jason Johnstone ended the event with a 160, followed by Troy Toner and Kyle Sheppard with 162 and 165, respectively.
They were not intimidated by the other teams and I admire that, Evenson said on his boys team.
The Blue Pony girls will lose three seniors, Lammerding, Obie and Springer.
It is going to be tough to replace them, and the leadership that they provided, Evenson said. Were going to have to look to our younger classmen. We have some good people on the JV team coming up.
Boys
Team scores: Laurel 589, Polson 623, Havre 628, Dillon 634, Billings Central 653, Lewistown 657, Sidney 659, Whitefish 667, Stevensville 677, Bigfork 683, Colstrip 686, Belgrade 701.
Top 10 individuals (All-State): Nate Bailey, Laurel, 69-72 141; Brad Fox, Laurel, 72-71 143; Brett Woods, Laurel, 74-77 151; Casey Lozar, Polson, 77-74 151; Nick Obie, Havre, 77-77 154; Judd Norman, Laurel, 77-77 154; James Dayton, Bigfork, 82-73 155; Kevin Harada 73-83 155; Trent Cottom, Dillon, 80-76 156; Ty Solberg, Lewistown, 76-80 156; Jed Bateman, Sidney, 75-81 156.
Havre (314-309 623): Nick Obie 77-77 154, Jason Johnstone 81-79 160, Troy Toner 83-81 162, Kevin Harada 73-83 156, Kyle Sheppard 88-77 165,
Girls
Team scores: Whitefish 746, Billings Central 754, Miles City 770, Laurel 792, Bigfork 809, Belgrade 814, Colstrip 828, Dillon 829, Havre 829, Libby 838, Livingston 844, Polson 939.
Top 10 individuals (All-State): Mandy Gunville, Billings Central, 86-90 176; Brianne Woods, Laurel, 88-88 176, Jacquie Henthorn 94-86 180, Kelsey Jensen, Whitefish, 89-92 181; Bobby Hullet, Bigfork, 89-93 183; Averiee Wolff, Libby, 93-90 183; Becky Handcock, Livingston, 90-94 184; Kaycee Link 94-91 185; Erin Johns, Anaconda, 91-94 185; Ashley Griffith, Miles City, 96-90 186; Amber Griffith, Miles City, 98-88 186, Kim Kreiter, Billings Central, 92-94 186.
Havre (416-413 829): Shanda Lammerding 94-93 187, Katie Springer 104-109 213, Lisa Wagner 107-100 207, Jessica Sande 117-116 233, Tiffany:obie 111-111 222.
