It was five matches in six days for Head Coach Dan Olson and the Becker boys golf team, as they criss-crossed the state in the busiest stretch of their season. The team also marked the end of the 2021 M8 Conference competitions, with Bulldog Zach Stanz earning M8 All Conference honors.
M8 C-I
Last Wednesday, the Bulldogs played in their sixth conference match of the season at Purple Hawk course in Cambridge, coming away with a sixth place finish among the eight teams.
Ethan Tobako led the Bulldogs with an 85 and the team finished with a total of 349 strokes.
“We continued with the trend of having some big numbers on the card,” Olson said. “Ethan started with a quad, but held it together and played some good golf after his opening hole.”
Other qualifying scores for Becker included Zach Stanz 86, Matthew Martindale 88, and Tucker Rhodes 90. Princeton won the meet with a great score of 307.
Olson said the Bulldogs remain in fifth place overall in the M8 Conference, with Stanz and Martindale in All-Conference contention heading into the final conference meet.
Pebble Creek Quad
Last Thursday, the team hosted a quad meet at Pebble Creek and came away with a third place finish. Princeton again was the victor with a score of 318, but this time the Bulldogs were just 14 strokes behind on their home course.
“This was our first meet that we had five scores in the 80’s,” Olson said. “Overall it was one of our better team scores and it is good to see the team trending in the right direction.”
Stanz led the way for the Bulldogs with an 80, while Tobako and Martindale (83) and Brayden Graning (86) rounded out the scoring.
Detroit Lakes Invite
Last Friday and Saturday, the team played in the Detroit Lakes North/South Invite which includes rounds at Bemidji Town and Country Club and Headwaters Golf Club in Park Rapids.
Friday, the team shot a 337 at Town and Country and finished in sixth place. Saturday, Becker played at Headwaters and finished in seventh place with a team score of 346. Becker’s two day total of 683 put them in seventh place, while Moorhead was the winning team with a combined score of 601 strokes.
“I was happy with the way the team played on Friday as Bemidji is a tough course,” Olson said. “While Saturday’s score was not too far above our average, the course was playing easy. There was a stretch of three holes that most of the players struggled on.”
Stanz led the effort for the Bulldogs with a two day total of 163, while Martindale (171), Tobako (175) and Rhodes/Graning (177) rounded out Becker’s scoring.
M8 Princeton
Tuesday, Becker played its final M8 Conference meet of the season and according to Coach Olson, it was what he had been waiting for all season.
“The Bulldogs saved their best for last,” Olson said. “We shot a season low 324 which took second for the meet, but we still finished the season in fifth place as a team.”
Stanz was outstanding for Becker, shooting a 73 which was the low score for the meet. Overall, he finished in fourth place in the M8 for the season and was rewarded with being named All Conference.
“Matthew [Martindale] was not far behind Zach, shooting a season low 78 and just missing All Conference by a half of a stroke,” Olson said. “However, he earned Honorable Mention.”
Olson was happy with how his team responded in the final conference match.
“The team rebounded from a tough weekend up North,” Olson said. “I hope that they can keep this momentum going into next week!”
The Bulldogs will compete in the Section tournament Tuesday at Rich Springs.
