It was hot, humid and windy this week in Jordan as Becker’s four entrants in the Class AA state tournament at Sand Creek played with gusto in hopes of grabbing a state title. Becker sent Jackson Fluck and Alex Stanz on the boys side and Hannah Garcia and Macy Erson on the girls.
Boys Golf
Rain also played a role Monday and late Tuesday, making the greens very receptive — but the players struggled with some “nasty” pin placements on both days. Fortunately, the boys went off in the morning wave and were able to avoid any issues with rain.
On day one, Fluck and Stanz played really well with Fluck shooting a 74 and Stanz coming in with a 76.
“Both guys came out with solid starts, but had a few missteps along the way,” said Head Coach Dan Olson, who walked the course with both his players.
“Both (Jackson and Alex) had a couple of three putts during their first round. They were swinging easy and made great shots.”
On day two, both Fluck and Stanz started out well, but ran into some trouble late on their outward and inward nines, which led them both to shoot 79s.
“Alex injured his back hitting his second shot on his ninth hole,” said Olson. “He was able to play through the pain, but had a triple on his 15th that hurt his score.”
“Jackson started off well, but missed a few putts and had a couple of bad breaks during his round.”
Fluck finished tied for 28th and Stanz finished tied for 32nd. Cecil Belisle of Red Wing captured the state title with a two-day total of 139. His score was two shots better than second place finishers Brandon Nelson (Litchfield), Paul Stankey (Providence Academy) and Lincoln Cizek (Holy Family), who shot 141s.
“It was a privilege to be able to be with them during the state meet,” said Olson. “When you think about it, 768 kids play in 2A and only 88 make it to state. Just making it is a great accomplishment.”
Olson pointed out that Fluck made it three times in his high school career and Stanz twice, with Stanz returning for his senior year in 2018.
“Becker had two outstanding individuals represent the school well at state,” said the head coach. “You could not ask for two nicer kids to be on the team. I was blessed to have Jackson part of the team for as many years as I did. Alex will be our leader next year and he will do a great job as the team captain.”
The Blake School took home the team state title with a score of 587, four better than second place finisher, Holy Family.
Girls Golf
Hannah Garcia finished in 41st place and Macy Erson placed 54th. Garcia — a sophomore — shot a 98 Tuesday and an 85 Wednesday while Erson (senior) went 95-95.
Anni Heck of Visitation captured the state title with a two-day total of 144, three better than second place finisher, Ashlyn Guggisberg of Minnewaska.
Detroit Lakes won the team title with a 649, besting Lake City by four strokes and Visitation by 24.
