Luke Schneider
EDINBURGH — It felt like deja vu again for the No. 19 Columbus North boys golf team during its Conference Indiana championship Monday at Timbergate Golf Course.
The Bull Dogs put up a low score, but once again, came up just short. No. 4 Bloomington South edged out North 294-297 to claim the conference title.
“It was good to see all five guys under 80, all five guys make All-Conference — those are good things,” North coach Doug Bieker said. “I think this team is capable. They’ve got to believe in themselves at some point. We stressed to them that 77, 78, 79 isn’t good enough. They’ve got to believe in themselves they can shoot a better score than that. They started to prove that to themselves today.”
Bloomington North finished third with a 338, followed by Terre Haute North with a 341, Terre Haute South with a 355 and Southport with a 371.
The Panthers put four of their players on the All-Conference Indiana Team, while Bull Dogs had all five of their golfers on the team.
Happy Gilmore of Bloomington South was the medalist with a 2-under-par 70.
Willy Davis
Columbus North was led by Luke Schneider, who tied for second individually with a 73. Willy Davis finished with a 74. Tyler Wilks and Jack Schiavello scored 75 apiece, and Brady Schneider carded a 79.
Luke Schneider set a school record last week with a 63 at Timbergate.
“The conditions were fine out here. Since I’ve shot 63, I’ve been thinking more about my shots instead of playing golf. It’s been pretty difficult to rebound from that,” Schneider said. “I didn’t play too bad today. We made a great effort today. I was super-proud of the guys. They really came out and gave it everything they had. We came very close.”
It will be a tough road for the Bull Dogs if they want to return to the state finals after failing to qualify last year. Teams such as No. 4 Bloomington South, No. 6 Center Grove, No. 9 Silver Creek and No. 20 Jasper will all be in the mix for the three state qualifying berths in next month’s Providence Regional.
“It’s bad to lose, but the goal is to keep getting better and to put ourselves in position at the regional and state finals to be there on the second day,” Bieker said. “If this team can get to state on the second day, I think they’re going to surprise some people.”
