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BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS
Sports Editor, RTC
Boys golf
The Rochester boys golf team shot a 346 and finished 10th out of 20 teams at the Rock Hollow Varsity Invitational at Rock Hollow Golf Club in Peru on May 22.
Meanwhile, Tippecanoe Valley shot a 395 and finished 15th.
Center Grove won the 20-team tournament with a 309. Runner-up Brebeuf Jesuit was four strokes back.
Reece Renie led Rochester with an 80. Wade Shafer had an 85, Drew Strasser had an 89, J.R. McLochlin had an 92, and Dryden Vance had a 98.
“I feel like overall, we should be pretty happy with our performance today,” Rochester coach Dan Bailey said. “The scores, I think, looked OK for sure. It looked like a pretty good score for Wade and a pretty good score for Dryden for sure. I know Reece had it going for awhile and kind of stumbled coming in. All things considered, I think it was a pretty positive day.”
Greg Miller led Valley with an 81. Mason Purvis and Eli Love each shot a 103, Branson McBrier had a 108, and Grady McGriff had a 117.
“We kind of came in knowing this was going to be probably the most difficult course we play all year,” Valley coach Nick Kindig said. “I’m sure he would like to be able to learn that because he plays it here a lot. I think he would kind of consider this his home away from home. … It’s a long day out here, and it takes a lot of concentration. Overall, though, I think he played pretty well.”
at Rock Hollow Golf Club, Peru, May 22
Center Grove 309, Brebeuf Jesuit 313, Kokomo 318, Carmel 318, Lewis Cass 322, Tipton 337, Zionsville 339, Fort Wayne Canterbury 340, Maconaquah 341, Rochester 346, Peru 372, Whitko 372, Western 376, Northfield 381, Tippecanoe Valley 395, Northwestern 396, Southwood 402, Wabash 422, North Miami 452, Eastern (Greentown) 481
ROCHESTER (346): Reece Renie 80, Wade Shafer 85, Drew Strasser 89, J.R. McLochlin 92, (Dryden Vance 98)
VALLEY (395): Greg Miller 81, Mason Purvis 103, Eli Love 103, Branson McBrier 108, (Grady McGriff 117)
Rochester finishes 2nd, Valley 7th in TRC (May 15): The Rochester boys golf team shot a 337 and finished second, and Tippecanoe Valley shot a 396 and finished seventh out of 10 teams at the Three Rivers Conference tournament at Rozella Ford Golf Club in Warsaw May 15.
Maconaquah won the team title with a 331. Peru’s Kash Bellar, who would go on and win IHSAA state medalist honors on June 15-16, won conference medalist with a 72.
Rochester’s Reece Renie and Wade Shafer and Valley’s Greg Miller all earned all-TRC honors. Miller shot a 76, and Renie and Shafer each had 79s.
The top 10 players received all-TRC medals.
In addition to Renie and Shafer, Dryden Vance shot an 88 and Drew Strasser and J.R. McLochlin each shot 91s.
Rochester’s score was a season low for 18 holes. Temperatures were pleasant, and the wind was not a factor.
“When I saw all the team averages, Maconaquah’s average was four of five strokes better than ours, and we were a few strokes better than the next one,” Rochester coach Dan Bailey said. “I knew we had an opportunity to get into a race for the top, and it obviously turn out the way we wanted it, but sometimes, the other guy just plays better. So I think that was the situation today.”
Bailey said both Renie and Shafer have “tremendous natural talent.”
“Sometimes, we’ve got to help them get out of their own way sometimes,” Bailey said. “But I was really happy for Wade. I think this was his best 18-hole tournament ever.”
Renie would go on and win sectional medalist honors at Dykeman Park Golf Course at Logansport 20 days after this tournament.
“Reece puts a lot of pressure on himself and has some really high expectations,” Bailey said. “He played pretty well. He had a couple holes where it got sideways a little bit. But I’m super-proud of him. He does a great job of leading. He’s his biggest critic.”
Other Valley scores included Mason Purvis’ 106, Grady McGrIff’s 106, Branson McBrier’s 108, and Eli Love’s 112.
at Rozella Ford Golf Club, Warsaw, May 15
Maconaquah 331, Rochester 337, Whitko 353, Northfield 362, Peru 374, Manchester 379, Tippecanoe Valley 396, Southwood 411, Wabash 415, North Miami 453
MACONAQUAH (331): Taylor 74, Williamson 75, Guyer 85, Hershberger 97, (Brehmer 110)
ROCHESTER (337): Reece Renie 79, Wade Shafer 79, Dryden Vance 88, Drew Strasser 91, (J.R. McLochlin 91)
WHITKO (353): Reiff 82, Bryant 85, Strayer 89, Schroeder 97, (Kreps 101)
NORTHFIELD (362): Baer 75, Ross 94, Hoffman 94, Cartwright 99, (Tracy 107)
PERU (374): Bellar 72, Van Baalen 89, Reese Smith 99, Riley Smith 114, (Raber 121)
MANCHESTER (379): Kruschwitz 74, Lauer 95, Wiley 102, Duffy 108, (Felgar 113)
VALLEY (396): Greg Miller 76, Mason Purvis 106, Grady McGriff 106, Branson McBrier 108, (Eli Love 112)
SOUTHWOOD (411): Watson 83, Timmons 99, Baldwin 112, Stout 117, (Pace WD)
WABASH (415): Alex Dinkins 97, Andrew Dinkins 98, Coon 106, O’Neill 114, (Jones 118)
NORTH MIAMI (453): Moreland 109, Stockdale 109, I. Ireland 117, Caudill 118, (S. Ireland 135)
All-TRC team (top 10 plus ties): 1. Kash Bellar (Peru) – 72, t-2. Mason Taylor (Maconaquah) – 74, t-2. Owen Kruschwitz (Manchester) – 74, t-4. Hayden Williamson (Maconaquah) – 75, t-4. Toby Baer (Northfield) – 75, 6. Greg Miller (Valley) – 76, t-7. Reece Renie (Rochester) – 79, t-7. Wade Shafer (Rochester) – 79, 9. Dale Reiff (Whitko) – 82, 10. Luke Watson (Southwood) – 83
Rochester all-TRC Golfers Tippecanoe Valley all-TRC golfer
Wade Shafer, Left and Reece Renie Greg Miller
