Plainsmen take second at Hershey Invite

By Samantha Goff

Grant Tribune-Sentinel

Coach Kemling and his golf team participated in the Hershey Invite on April 13, where they played against eight other teams. 

Kemling said the weather was a factor, as there were gusty winds at times, but the temperature was comfortable. 

As a team, Perkins County came in second place, 18 points separated them from the day’s winning team, North Platte JV. 

“The team score was fine, but there are improvements to make it lower. The penalty strokes were too high for an easier course. The varsity players had 11 extra strokes taken from penalties from out of bounds and water hazard,” Coach Kemling said, noting that the team needs to play smarter going forward. 

“Putting also hurt the team score, as the greens dried, they became quick and we did not adjust to these changing conditions,” said Kemling. 

Individually, Josh Johnston was the team’s top golfer, with 83 strokes, earning him fifth place overall. Tyson Patrick took seventh with 84, and JV player Jacob Woodmancy was 11th overall, with 87 strokes.

“Jacob and Carson (Thelander) nearly medaled in the top 10 from JV positions. The challenge for us is to produce those kind of scores when you are playing varsity.

“We need to learn to relax and play even when there is added pressure playing in a varsity position,” Kemling added. 

Team scoring: 1. North Platte, JV, 327; 2. Perkins County, 345; 3. North Platte St. Pat’s, 355; 4. Valentine, 364; 5. Sutherland, 374; 6. Hershey, 401; 7. South Loup, 419; 8. Valentine JV, 455; 9. Sandhills Thedford, 464.

Individual scoring: 1. Jayden Jones, North Platte JV, 78; 2. Finn Lucas, North Platte JV, 79; 3. Jake Jones, North Platte St. Pat’s, 81; 4. Kyon Neal, McPherson County, 82; 5. Josh Johnston, Perkins County, 83; 6. Tanner Ruda, North Platte JV, 83; 7. Tyson Patrick, Perkins County, 84; 8. Tyler Thelander, Perkins County, 84; 9. Logan O’Kief Valentine, 86; 10. Drew Phillips, North Platte JV, 87; 11. Jacob Woodmancy, Perkins County, 87; 12. Kyler Peck, Sutherland.

Other Perkins County Golfers: 16. Carson Thelander, JV, 88; 26. Aaron Fay, 94; 32. Alex Poppe, JV, 98; 37. Michael Beck, 104.

Next Action

 The Perkins County Invite was held on April 18. See next week’s issue of the Grant Tribune for full results.