NORTH VERNON — The Columbus North and Jennings County boys golf teams took full advantage of the near perfect weather conditions in Wednesday’s three-way meet with Providence at St. Annes.
Drew Smith took advantage of the conditions the most by firing an 1-over-par 36 to earn medalist honors and help the Bull Dogs top the Panthers 154-161. Providence finished third with a 183.
"Everything was all right today. I hit it pretty well overall," Smith said. "I had a couple putts that I think I should have made, but I had some good shots that made up for it."
For North, Luke Schneider and Michael Gambaiani each shot 39, and Henry Kiel and Conner Williams each shot 40. Luke VanDeventer and Jacob Niedbalski each shot 43.
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"Michael played really well from the back end of the lineup, and Drew leading us off at the No. 1 spot, and those are better scores for (Smith) than what he did down at Seymour," North coach Doug Bieker said. "The weather is warming up a little bit. We’re able to practice a little bit. Wherever we’re playing, the greens are getting better. This team is moving in the right direction, and we’ll see what we can do (tonight) at home (against Franklin Central)."
The Panthers were led by Bryce Kirchner with a 39. Joe Kelley finished with a 40 and Adam Leach and Brett Silvey each shot 41. Conner Cook added a 43, and Zach Bingham and Weston Miller each shot 48.
"I’m very proud, and most of them scored below their average tonight," Jennings coach B.J. Bingham said. "They’ve been working hard, and this was our first home match and the course was in great shape. These guys have been working at it the last two weeks, and they just keep getting better. I hope they continue to get better. They keep doing the right things, so I’m very happy to be that close to North, and they played well, too."
With all seven of his players shooting 43 or better, Bieker has plenty of depth to work with this year.
"We know that we’re going to be deeper than we have been in the last couple years, which is a good thing," Bieker said. "It really pushes those guys to keep working and keep getting better because there are younger guys that want that spot, and that’s going to do nothing but help us both this year and in the future. The future is bright, and I’m really excited to see what this team can do, certainly this year and in the coming years, as well."
