Spartans wind up second, Tigers third in MBC golf

• Cody Rozales

Tiger senior Cody Rozales shot a 76 to tie for medalist honors in the Middle Border Conference tournament.

Talk about it

The realization that no team was going to catch the Osceola Chieftains for the Middle Border Conference boys golf title developed pretty early this season.

So the competition for the rest of the MBC teams was to see who could line up next in the rankings behind the Chieftains. Somerset and New Richmond finished next in line in the MBC standings, which were finalized with the 2011 Middle Border Conference Golf Tournament. The tournament was played last Tuesday at the New Richmond Golf Club.

Osceola won every conference match this season, finishing with a perfect 80 conference points. Somerset took second with 66. New Richmond was third with 56, finishing three points ahead of Amery.

The teams held true to their conference standings in their play in the MBC tournament. Osceola won the tournament with a round of 330. They were followed by Somerset at 342 and New Richmond at 343.

Osceola’s Charlie Danielson finished as the top player in the conference, winning every MBC event this year. New Richmond senior Cody Rozales ranked second in the conference total points. Somerset's Jake Green and Osceola’s Mike Henck tied for third in overall conference points. Those four players and Osceola’s Dan Cronick made up the all-conference first team.

Rozales had one of his best days of the season in Tuesday’s conference tournament. He shot a 76, tying Danielson for medalist honors in the tournament. Green finished third in the tournament with a score of 77.

Somerset coach Bill Powers said Green’s round in the MBC tournament showed Green has matured this season. Green shot a 42 on the front nine. He then regrouped, shooting a 35 on the back nine, which was the best score in the tournament on the back nine.

“He’s turned into a silent leader,” Powers said. “They see how hard he and (his younger brother) Danny are working.”

Danny Green shot an 84, Preston Germain an 87 and Jarod Bordynoski a 94 as Somerset’s scoring players.

Powers said the Spartans didn’t play sharply on the front nine, finishing with a 174. After reminding the team that they still hadn’t locked up second place in the overall standings, the Spartans played better on the back nine.

For New Richmond, the third place finish is a strong end product for what was a rebuilding year. Rozales was the only player returning to the team with significant varsity experience. His 76 on Tuesday was a strong indication that he’s ready to make a charge during the tournament season.

Junior Kyle Montgomery also played well in the MBC meet, finishing with an 83. Dylan Novitzke shot a 90 and freshmen Tanner Wisemiller and Connor McCann both shot 94. Wisemiller and McCann are both showing they have the golf skills to be key parts of the varsity for several years to come.

WIAA tournaments

New Richmond and Somerset were scheduled to compete in WIAA regional tournament play on Tuesday. The top four teams in each of Tuesday’s regionals will advance to next Tuesday’s sectionals. If the Tigers advance, they would play in the D.C. Everest Division 1 sectional tournament. If Somerset advances, the Spartans will play in next Tuesday’s Division 2 sectional tournament in Hayward.

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