Thompson Falls Golf makes history at Ronan
THOMPSON FALLS – The Bluehawk golf team had a strong performance at the Ronan Invitational, winning the tournament for the first time ever and beating Loyola for the first time in a handful of years.
The boys put all they had out on the green and it was worth it. The team won the tournament with 335 strokes. Although their competition followed closely behind, the Bluehawks had one less stroke than both Deer Lodge and Loyola Sacred Heart, who tied in second place.
Vinny Gallivan and Dalton Hooten tied for fifth place with 80 strokes. Caleb Bates, one of the Bluehawks’ top golfers, narrowly missed out on the top ten with 87 strokes. Even though Bates had an “off day,” Head Coach Gary Thompson said his score really helped the team.
The boys left the course on cloud nine.
“They were excited about it,” Coach Thompson said. “You never know what’s going to show up and we’ll just take what comes.”
Coach Thompson said typically Loyola does not have players shoot 100 and at the Ronan Invitational that’s exactly what happened. In the end, they were happy it did, as it helped boost the boys to their first place finish.
Although the girls do not have enough players to make a team, one girl did see success in Ronan.
Abby Croft placed seventh place overall and if all goes well, Coach Thompson expects her to compete at state on an individual level.
The boys have a busy two weeks ahead of them. Mid-way through the season, the team will be competing in to different invitationals: one at Deer Lodge on Thursday, April 24 and the other on Saturday, April 26 in Plains.
After that, the team will double up again, heading to St. Regis and hosting their own invitational on Saturday, May 3.
Although the week will be busy, Coach Thompson said the team can handle it well.
At the Deer Lodge invitational, the boys will face some teams from the east side of the state. Having already seen the teams, Thompson Falls knows what to expect.
“We tied with Townsend for second in Bigfork and Three Forks didn’t place in Loyola,” Coach Thompson said.
The team will once again be up against Loyola, who always brings a strong front.
As the season progress, Coach Thompson is happy with the performances he has seen thus far.
“I’m really pleased with what the kids have done so far, but I know we can do better,” Coach Thompson said. “I hope we peak at the right time.”
Right now the kids have to strengthen their mental game. Coach Thompson said each player has to be mentally tough to score well under pressure. The tougher the boys get, the better they’ll be in the end.
With a few more weeks ahead of them, the Bluehawks are already focusing at the end prize – the state tournament.
“We’re in good shape going to state. Hopefully we play real well when we get there,” Coach Thompson said.