NORTH VERNON — It took more than four scores to decide the champions Saturday at St. Annes Golf Course.
Tied at 314, Madison and Columbus East had to compare the cards of their fifth golfers. Seven shots made the difference.
The Cubs would take the 10-team Jennings County Invitational title, with Trent Jameson’s 91 trumping Cole Schafer’s 98 for East.
Seymour placed third in team scoring with a 324 followed by Southwestern (339), Greensburg (351), Jennings (353), Trinity Lutheran (358), Whiteland (372), Shelbyville (440) and Austin (444).
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The golfers battled a downpour for nearly nine holes before finishing the tournament in soggy conditions.
Southwestern’s Hunter Mefford shot an even-par 71 for top medalist honors.
Kody Reynolds and Adrian Adams each scored 78s, while Avery Foist and Mark Mahew carded 79s for the Olympians. The four all finished in the top nine individually.
“We did a great job of competing today. It was by far the best we’ve played this year,” East coach Tom LaBarbera said. “Everyone improved. It was tough conditions, with it raining half of the day.”
The Hoosier Hills Conference tournament will be held at St. Annes, and LaBarbera looks forward to bringing the team back.
“We play this course pretty well, but there were two teams — Bedford North Lawrence and Floyd Central — that weren’t here that are very good, and the other teams will improve,” he said.
“We have confidence that we will do well and compete in the conference tournament.”
Bryce Kirchner led the Panthers by finishing third individually with a 76. Austin Roscoe (90), Justin Gapser (92), Hunter Conrad (95) and Joe Kelley (97) completed the Jennings scorecard.
“I think we played as expected,” Jennings coach B.J. Bingham said. “My No. 1 (Kirchner) played where I expected him to. The other guys were off. They were under-prepared.
“We had some big numbers early in the pouring rain, but so did the other teams,” he said. “This team has come a long way. All of the guys were about their averages, we need them to kick it up a notch.”
Trinity’s seventh-place finish was led by an 82 from Noah Criswell. Jacob Keith (85), Mark Shoemaker (90), Ryland Nierman (101) and Josiah Foster (103) rounded out the Cougars’ five.
“They did pretty well. I’m pretty happy with the kids’ scores,” Trinity coach Greg Personett said. “The only one with tournament experience coming back is Jacob Keith. They are making improvements, and playing in these tournaments really helps them grow.”
