With 20 days off between tournaments, it seemed like the beginning of the season once again for the Lowry High School boys golf team.
After playing their first two Division I-A North meets in mid March, the Buckaroos were off until they hit Wildcreek Golf Course in Sparks on April 10.
Despite shooting its highest score of the year at 403, Lowry still ran away with the team championship by 40 shots. Spring Creek was second at 443 and Elko was third at 452.
Lowry, winners of three of the last four Division I-A state championships, has not lost a tournament since the 2011 state championship to Churchill County.
"That was our highest score of the year and the layoff may have hurt, you like to stay in a rhythm," said LHS coach Andrew Meyer. "Wildcreek is a tough course, it's a tough walk and there is a lot of trouble."
The one thing that hasn't changed is the dominance of the Buckaroos' Ethan Gray. The senior won his third low medalist honor of the season, with a 1-over par 73. Teammate Andy Mendoza was second with a 75 and the duo are first and second in the individual standings for the season.
"Ethan is just playing out of his mind right now," Meyer said. "He is just solid. He is showing he is the best golfer in the north. Andy has really matured as a player and has come along way. He is hitting the ball about 40 yards longer than he was last year. He is hitting his drive about 340 yards and he is playing smart."
Chris Mendoza shot an 80 for the Buckaroos, Josh Shaver carded an 84 and Josh Rose (91) and Hunter Dimock (98) rounded out the scores. Dimock was playing in his first tournament of the year.
"What I see right now is that our top four is solid," Meyer said. "When they struggle, they will shoot in the low 80s. When they are on they will shoot in the 70s. What I need is that fifth and sixth guy to be in the mid-80s. I am not asking them to shoot in the 70s. This team has the ability to shoot in the low 380s anytime. I felt Hunter did a good job. He had a good round of qualifying to get into the top six. There might have been some nerves with his first tournament of the year."
Lowry widened its lead in the season-long standings to four points over Elko. The Buckaroos have 27 points, Elko 23 and Spring Creek is third with 22. The top three teams in the final regular season standings advance to the Division I-A State Championships on May 21-22 at Mountain Falls Golf Course in Pahrump. The Division I-A North doesn't have a regional championship.
"With a lot of these guys, all I am doing is mental preparation," Meyer said. "They tend to get down on themselves if they don't have a good round. Their swings are beyond me and a lot of them have swing coaches. The biggest thing we have to fix is our short game. We had trouble putting all day. We had a couple of four and five putts. You just can't do that."
Lowry played at Ruby View Golf Course in Elko on Thursday and results were not available at press time. The Buckaroos play in Spring Creek on Friday at 9 a.m.
"We should be able to get back to a rhythm and we will see where we are at," Meyer said. "It looks like for us that the top four and bottom three have separated themselves from everyone else on the team. Picking a team for state is going to be tough and I am going to make it fair as possible. We still have work to do. I am happy with where we are. They know where they need to be. It's my job to keep the big picture in front of them. There is a team down south that isn't messing around. I am sure they are hungry, but so is Lowry."[[In-content Ad]]
