West Liberty’s boys’ and girls’ golf teams hit the links last week for the River Valley Conference tournaments held at the neutral site of Muscatine Municipal Golf Course.
There, on May 1, the Comet boys put on a great showing with a fifth-place team finish with two members inside the top five.
Juniors Cael Daufeldt and Cole Daufeldt both had dynamite rounds, shooting a 79 and 80 respectively. Cael tied for second while Cole earned a solo fourth finish on the leaderboard.
Freshman Landon Wainwright completed his first conference tournament with an 84 — good for a T16. Meanwhile, freshman Kaden Wiele shot a 99 and tied for 48th.
Nobody in the conference was catching Beckman Catholic senior Luke Harwick on this day as the Blazer shot an incredible 72, which is even par for this golf course.
He helped the Blazers (314 team score) win the meet by a comfortable 15 shots. West Branch (329) and Cascade (332) slotted in at second and third.
The girls got the action started on the final day of April, and the Comets settled in with an eighth-place finish at the meet with a team score of 437.
Mid-Prairie (373 team score) just edged out Tipton (375) and Beckman Catholic (377) for the conference crown.
For West Liberty, freshman Kamryn Gilmore led the way with a 103, good for a T21 finish.
Junior Addison Beaver was right behind with a 107 and a solo 28th.
The other two scoring golfers for the Comets on Tuesday were juniors Sophie Buysse (112 — T36) and Kaylee Pelzer (115 — T42).
Tipton sophomore Paycee Sorgenfrey was the meet medalist with a six-stroke winning score of 79.
Playoff preview
Next on the agenda for these teams are the regional and sectional tournaments this week.
For the boys, they will travel to the familiar greens of Kalona Golf Course and will join Central Lee, Mediapolis, Mid-Prairie, Iowa City Regina, Tipton, Van Buren County and West Branch.
The first and second-place teams at this event will advance to district play. Additionally, the top two overall individuals not on a qualifying team will play in the district tournament as well.
For any and all West Liberty golfers, this would be a tournament on May 13 hosted at Pleasant Valley Golf Course.
On the girls’ side, it is a big opportunity for the Comets as the regional final is scheduled to be held at West Liberty Country Club on May 15.
However, to get there, the Comets would have to advance out of a grouping containing Burlington Notre Dame / West Burlington, Central Lee, Mediapolis, Mid-Prairie, Tipton, Van Buren County and Durant.
This event is slated for May 10 at Kalona Golf Course. The qualifying parameters are the same for both the boys’ and girls’ high school athletic associations.