Bluehawks finish at top of leaderboard in first tournament
They may not have won any green jackets for their play, but the games of the Thompson Falls boys’ golf team last weekend were nothing short of masterful.
The Bluehawks finished in first place in the team results and had three of the players finish in the top five in the individual results at the two-day Loyola Sacred Heart Invitational golf tournament in Missoula.
“That’s the way to get it going,” said Bluehawks coach Lance Pavlik.
Brandon Damaskos led the charge for the Bluehawks. After shooting a 77 at Larchmont Friday, the senior followed it up with a 75-stroke round at the Missoula Country Club, to win the individual crown by one stroke. “He just played a good steady round,” Pavlik said.
Thompson Falls senior RT Brown was nipping at Damaskos’ heels the entire final day. Brown shot a 76 the final day to finish the tournament at 153, one stroke behind Damaskos and tied with Fairfield’s Taylor Ratliff for second place. Brown lost the chip-off to Ratliff to finish in third place.
Erik Gilbert, another Bluehawk senior, shot a two-day total of 159 to finish in fifth. Pavlik said that none of his three seniors played above their normal game. “They’re all capable of shooting what they did.” he said. In fact, Pavlik said there was still room for improvement and his players are aware of this. “They know where they can make adjustments,” he said.
With three golfers finishing in the top three and the Mosher twins having solid rounds, the Bluehawks dominated the team results, winning by 26 shots. Jesse Mosher shot a 170 and Cody Mosher finished with a 176. Pavlik said finishing in first place in the first tournament is a good way to start the season and should give his team some momentum. “They’re thrilled to build on what they accomplished,” he said.
Plains had two of their golfers finish in the top 10 and finished fifth in the team results. “I was happy with what the kids did,” said Horsemen coach Terri Kendall.
Horseman senior Tanner Colombo shot a two-day total of 161 to finish in eighth. After shooting an 82 the first day, Colombo rebounded the second day, shooting a 79. Kendall said while a 79 isn’t a bad score, last year’s divisional winner can shoot lower. “He can shoot better than that,” she said.
Plains’ Dusty Burgess struggled the first day, shooting an 86, but found his game the second day, taking nine strokes off his score, to finish in ninth place with a 163. Kendall said she was impressed with the senior’s second day score of 77. “That’s a good score for anybody,” she said.
The Horsemen combined to shoot a 697 to finish in fifth place. Kendall said she was encouraged by her juniors Ben Holland’s and Bryce Benson’s play at the tournament. Holland shot a 184 and Benson shot a 189. “Ben and Bryce really came through for us,” she said.
The Lady Hawks finished in eighth place with a total of 982 strokes. Sang Hee Lee finished the lowest, coming in the clubhouse with a 238. Pavlik said Emily LaFriniere, who shot a 242, is the only golfer on the team that has played before. “They’re all beginners,” he said. “I was surprised at how well they did for beginners,” he said. Pavlik said with beginners, the more holes they play the better they will get and he expects his young team to steadily improve as the season progresses.
Thompson Falls will travel to Plains Saturday for the Plains Invitational.