Central boys golf team gets back to .500, girls lose first match
By Willis Patenaude, Times-Register
The Central Girls golf team got off to a great start last week, beating Postville 242-246 at Elkader Golf Course and Country Club on April 26.
The medalist was Central’s Madison Sylvester, with a 52. Runner up medalist was Haley Palas from Postville, who shot a 52.
Other scores from Central were Haley Frieden with a 58, Makayla Erickson finished with a 67 and Maddi Schmidt entered the clubhouse with a 73.
“This was a close meet, and it was good to see our team fight back after having some struggling holes,” coach Jamie Rodenberg said.
The Central boys also beat Postville, thanks to a score of 189-226.
Medalist was Parker Smith from Central with a 40, and the runner up was also from Central, Tommy Seeland, who shot a 45.
Some other scores from Central were Evan Pensel with a 50, Karl Gardner shot a 54, Luke Asche shot a 58 and Brock Eglseder completed the day with a score of 61. Tristan Weigand and Jordan Helgerson each shot 63, Keaton Klingman had a 71 and Marcus Evans shot a 75.
“It was great to see Parker Smith have a great round. He played the last six holes at even par. Smith eagled the par five ninth to highlight his round. Karl Gardner shooting a 54 was one of his finest rounds thus far. It was, overall, a good team effort,” Rodenberg said.
The following match wasn’t as kind to the Central girls, as they lost to Clayton Ridge 239-243 at Guttenberg on April 28. Central’s Sylvester was again the medalist with a 53, and runner up medalists were Erickson from Central and Savannah Meyer and Emma Kulper from Clayton Ridge. All three girls shot 58s.
Other scores from Central included a 64 from Frieden, Sophia Keppler with a 68, Alexis Fettkether shot a 70 and Schmidt ended the day with an 88.
“Even though we lost, our girls played well on a difficult course,” said Rodenberg. “Madison Sylvester’s fine round was highlighted with a three on the difficult par three. Sylvester has been medalist in all four meets so far, and continues to be a great leader for our team. Makayla Erickson earning a second place medal is awesome as well. This is her first year playing, and she continues to get better. Central is 3-1 on the season, and coach Smith and I are very pleased with all of them.”
The Central boys continued to win at Guttenberg, beating Clayton Ridge 195-208. Smith from Central was the medalist with a 45, and Pensel was the runner up medalist with a 47.
Other scores from Central were Tommy Seeland with a 49, Eglseder shot a 54, Gardner finished with a 57, Asche hit the clubhouse with a 62 and Weigand shot a 65. Klingman and Helgerson each shot a 73, while Evans tallied a 79.
“Most of our guys played better than the previous day. Parker Smith had four pars, and after one bad hole, bounced back the next hole with a par. Evan Pensel played much better, shooting a 47 which included three pars. Those pars were on holes two, seven and nine. Sophomore Brock Eglseder highlighted his round with a birdie chip in on the par four number seven. Tommy Seeland struggled at times, but kept fighting, and salvaged a round of 49,” said Rodenberg. “Our team is now 2-2 on the season in dual meets. Coach Tony Smith and I are happy to see all our players working hard and having fun.”
The golfers will return to the course with a match against West Central on May 3, then will be home versus North Fayette Valley on May 6.
