GOLF
Photo by Summer Newman
Photo by Summer Newman
Kila Cannon
Photo by Summer Newman
Ashley Maki
Photo by Summer Newman
Kylee Seifert
Photo by Summer Newman
Ashley Maki
Photo by Summer Newman
Monday, August 28, 2023
Polson golfers crowd leaderboard at Columbia Falls
by John Heglie
At the Columbia Falls Invitational held at Meadow Lake Golf Course the last week of August, both Polson teams swept the team titles. The Pirate ladds placed all five of their members among the top ten, paced by a team best 76 from Espn Fisher that included a hole-in-one on the twelfth hole along with a pair of one-under pars. Reece Malyevac of Libby took medalist honors with a four-under par 68. The Ronan Chiefs were paced by a top 15 finish from Colter Cornwell.
The Lady Pirate lassies were paced by Ashley Maki, who mirrored State B champion Keni Wade of Bigfork with a cumulative course tally of 86. Maki was two-under Wade on the front nine, while Wade closed out the back nine by notching two-under Maki. The Ronan Maidens were led by Hanna Lytton, who finished among the high teens, a mere seven strokes from squeezing her way among the top 15.
2023 Columbia Falls Invitational
Meadow Lake GC
Monday, August 28
BOYS
Team scores
1, Polson (Pol) 316; 2, Corvallis (Cor) 346; 3, Hamilton (Ham) 359; 4, Whitefish (Wf) 360; 5, Columbia Falls (CF) 377; 6, Ronan (Ron) 401; 7, Bigfork (Bf) 402; 8, Stevensville (Ste) 424; 9, Libby (Lib) 434; <4: Browning.
Top 15 individuals
1, Reece Malyevac (Lib) 68; 2, Brady Powell (Cor) 75; 3, Espn Fisher (Pol) 76; t4, Carson Hupka (Pol) 79; t4, Tate Jessop (Cor) 79; t6, Riley Brown (Wf) 80; t6, Torrin Ellis (Pol) 80; 8, Otto Lund (Pol) 81; t9, Colin Wade (Bf) 82; t9, Hunter Emerson (Pol) 82; 11, Colter Cornwell (Ron) 84; t12, Tyce O'Connell
(Ham) 85; t12, Connor Presnell (CF) 85; 14, Josh Bender (Ham) 86; 15, Cole Dickemore (Ham) 87.
Individual team scores
POLSON (316) – 3, Espn Fisher 76; t4, Carson Hupka 79; t6, Torrin Ellis 80; 8, Otto Lund 81; t9, Hunter Emerson 82.
CORVALLIS (346) – 2, Brady Powell 75; t4, Tate Jessop 79; 18, Tag Jessop 90; 31, Aden Fisher 102; t36, Brandon Brenneman 105.
HAMILTON (359) – t12, Tyce O'Connell 85; 14, Josh Bender 86; 15, Cole Dickemore 87; 30, Jackson Kirkbride 101; t32, Hunter Harness 103.
WHITEFISH (360) – t6, Riley Brown 80; t16, Otto Klein 89; 20, Ashton Taylor 94; 22, Aiden Rickels 97; t25 Christian Schwaderer 100.
COLUMBIA FALLS (377) – t12, Connor Presnell 85; t16, Winslow Peters 89; t26, Evan Fisher 100; t32, Logan Victor 103; t32, Tucker Gonzales 103; 39, Will Pickard 109; 40, Jax Ramage 110; 42, Carson Settles 112.
RONAN (401) – 11, Colter Cornwell 84; 22, Oliver Rowe 95; t26, Cooper Clary 100; 46, Connor Durglo 122; ns, Trey Samsel.
BIGFORK (402) – t9, Colin Wade 82; t24, Levi Dawson 99; 38, Mason Peterson, 108; 43, Kennan Voelker 113; 47, Hayden Mayer 134.
STEVENSVILLE (424) – 19, Selwyn Hackett 91; 35, Corbin Mauler 104; 41, Zach Polanski 111; 44, Christian Yaskus 118; ns, Teigan Hackett
LIBBY (434)– 1, Reece Malyevac 68; t36, Easton Peterson 105; 45, Teague Thompson 119; 48, Ayden Montgomery 142;
BROWNING – 23, Isaac Flamand 98; t24, Taymond Stiffarm 99; t26, Jaylyn Aimsback 100;
GIRLS
Team scores
1, Polson 389; 2, Hamilton 402; 3, Bigfork 420; 4, Whitefish 439; <4: Stevensville, C-Falls, Ronan, Libby, Corvallis, Browning.
Top 15 individuals
t1, Keni Wade (Bf) 86; t1, Ashley Maki (Pol) 86; 3, Emma Hollingsworth (Ham) 94; 4, Cameron Burnett (Ham) 94; 5, Kylee Seifert (Pol) 98;
6, Brooklyn Brown (Ham) 100; 7, Leia Brennan (Wf) 100; 8, Claire Konen (Pol) 101; 9, Ava Zignego (Wf) 102; 10, Addy Bowler (CF) 103; 11,
Kila Cannon (Pol) 104; 12, Cambree Praast (Ste) 104; 13, Cheyenne Sannar (Ste) 106; 14, Ava Hall (Bf) 106; 15, Karlee Brown (Wf) 108.
Individual team scores
POLSON (389) – t1, Ashley Maki 86; 5, Kylee Seifert 98; 8, Claire Konen 101; 11, Kila Cannon 104.
HAMILTON (402) – 3, Emma Hollingsworth 94; 4, Cameron Burnett 94; 6, Brooklyn Brown 100; 17, Bryn Cianflone 114; 24, Rhain Hollingsworth 124.
BIGFORK (420) – t1, Keni Wade 86; 14, Ava Hall 106; 16, Keegan Campbell 109; 22, Casey Reidlinger 119.
WHITEFISH (439) – 7, Leia Brennan 100; 9, Ava Zignego 102; 15, Karlee Brown 108; 26, Ryhlee Scott 129;
STEVENSVILLE – 12, Cambree Praast 104; 13, Cheyenne Sannar 106; 19, Kamryn Jones 115;
COLUMBIA FALLS – 10, Addy Bowler 103; 25, Lexi Johnson 125; 28, Sophie Robbins 136; na, Gracie Harvey-Waters, ns.
RONAN – 18, Hanna Lytton 115; 21, Mady Evelo 118; 27, Emma Smith 135.
LIBBY – 23, Addison Skranak 123; 31, Lucy DeShazer 160.
CORVALLIS – 29, Gracee Storrud 136; 30, Josalynn Lendak 140.
BROWNING – 20, Brooke Blue 117; na, Natalee St.Goddard ns; na, Kalcie Connelly ns; na, Jerel WhiteGrass ns.
Bucs abound with bounty with divisional treasure trove
by John Heglie
A tandem of team titles, a medalist, a runnerup and eight all-conference accolades were the yield from the Western A Divisional golf tournament held in Whitefish.
For the Pirate ladds, Otto Lund captured divisional medalist honors with a one stroke lead over Reece Malyevac of Libby and Tate Jessop of Corvallis. Carson Hupka tied fourth, Espn Fisher placed sixth and Hunter Emerson tied twelfth, the quartet of Pirates garnering all-conference honors. Torrin Ellis finished a mere four strokes from making the list.
All four Lady Pirate lasses accrued all-conference honors as Ashley Maki tied second, Kylee Siefert placed fourth, while Clare Konen and Kila Cannon both tied eleventh. Both Maki and defending State B champion Keni Wade of Bigfork were a mere four strokes behind defending champion Katie Lewis of Frenchtown.
Three Mission Valley teams qualify for the State A tournament in Sidney. Both Polson teams, the Ronan boys and Maiden Mady Evelo of Ronan will make the trip to the other side of the state. Both Polson squads are considered part of the conversation to contend for team honors with solid outings. The Lady Pirate girls are defending team titlists. The Pirate boys placed second last year and third in 2021, both times trailing the Laurel Locomotives.
Top four teams and top eight unaffiliated individuals advance to State A at Sidney
2023 Western A Divisional
Whitefish Lake GC, South Course
Thursday, September 21
GIRLS
Team scores
1, Polson (Pol) 355; 2, Hamilton (Ham) 375; 3, Frenchtown (Fr) 400; 4, Dillon (Dil) 410; 5, Whitefish (Wf) 411; 6, Bigfork (Bf) 413; 7, Columbia Falls 494; <4: Ronan, Libby, Browning, Corvallis, Stevensville.
Top 15 individuals
1, Katie Lewis (Fr) 72; t2, Keni Wade (Bf) 76; t2, Ashley Maki (Pol) 76; 4, Kylee Seifert (Pol) 85; 5, Brooklyn Brown (Ham) 91; t6, Leia Brennan (Wf) 92; t6, Cameron Burnett (Ham) 92; 8, Skylar LaPierre (Dil) 94; t9, Emma Hollingsworth (Ham) 96; t9, Bryn Cianflone (Ham) 96; t11, Clare Konen (Pol) 97; t11, Kila Cannon (Pol) 97; 13, Cambree Praast (Ste) 98; t14, Bridget Anderson (Fr) 99; t14, Keegan Campbell (Bf) 99.
Team individual finishes (Mission Valley area abridged)
POLSON (355) – t2, Ashley Maki 76; 4, Kylee Seifert 85; t11, Clare Konen 97; t11, Kila Cannon 97.
BIGFORK (413) – t2, Keni Wade 76; t14, Keegan Campbell 99; t28, Ava Hall 119; t28, Casey Riedinger 119; 43, Amelia Hall 152.
RONAN – t19, Mady Evelo 105; 35, Emma Smith 124;
BOYS
Team scores
1, Polson 304; 2, Corvallis 316; 3, Hamilton 333; 4, Ronan (Ron) 341; 5, Columbia Falls (CF) 345; 6, Whitefish 355; 7, Frenchtown 369; t8, Dillon 381; t8, Butte Central 381; 10, Stevensville 401; 11, Libby (Lib) 409; 12, Bigfork (Bf) 433.
Top 15 individuals
1, Otto Lund (Pol) 72; t2, Reece Malyevac (Lib) 73; t2, Tate Jessop (Cor) 73; t4, Carson Hupka (Pol) 75; t4, Tyce O'Connell (Ham) 75; 6, Espn Fisher (Pol) 76; 7, Brady Powell (Cor) 77; 8, Tag Jessop (Cor) 78; t9, Riley Brown (Wf) 80; t9, Colin Wade (Bf) 80; t9, Isaac Flamand (Brn) 80; t12, Colter Cornwell (Ron) 81; t12, Winslow Peters (CF) 81; t12, Hunter Emerson (Pol) 81; 15, Cooper Clary (Ron) 83.
Team individual finishes (Mission Valley area abridged)
POLSON (304) – 1, Otto Lund 72; t4, Carson Hupka 75; 6, Espn Fisher 76; t12, Hunter Emerson 81; t20, Torrin Ellis 87.
RONAN (341) – t12, Colter Cornwell 81; 15, Cooper Clary 83; t17, Oliver Rowe 86; t28, Trey Samsel 91; 54, Connor Durglo 110;
BIGFORK (433) – t9, Colin Wade 80; 56, Keenan Voelker 113; t58, Levi Dawson 117; 61, Hayden Mayer 123; 62, Mason Peterson 132.
Unabridged results can be viewed online at < https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/9880134780824102816 >
Pirate golf squads cap season with team titles, medalist honors for Emerson
by John Heglie
One could say that the Sidney golf course is renowned for its long drives in more ways than just a reference to its greens. If one left simultaneously from the south end of Flathead Lake in opposite directions toward both Seattle and Sidney driving at the same speed, one would arrive at the West Coast sooner and still have time to drive around Lake Washington before you got to Sidney. Despite the l-o-n-g excursion across the expanse of the state, well worth the trip for both Polson teams: Two team titles and a half dozen all-staters was the yield of the Pirate golf squads from the State A tournament in Sidney.
Hunter Emerson’s hole-in-one on the first hole on Friday would prove instrumental in his shadowing the leaders. Emerson was tied-3rd one stroke back after the first day, but vaulted to the lead with the best second round when he carded two strokes better than the other leaders. He would need all his cumulative 16 evens and 9 birdies along with hole-in-one over the course of both days to hold off challengers at the top of the leader board.
Carson Hupka was tied for first with Brady Powell of Corvallis after first day action with a two under par 70. But his second day outing would be seven strokes longer for a five over par 77, shifting him back to fourth. Joining the Pirate all-state parade were Western A Divisional medalist Otto Lund (t11) and Espn Fisher (t13).
Ashley Maki held a four stroke lead on defending champion Katie Lewis after the first round. But unlike her performance at the two day multi-venue Corvallis Invitational earlier in the season, was unable to hold off the surge by Lewis. This time around, Lewis shaved ten strokes off her first day performance to vault into the lead to take medalist honors, while Maki’s second round gravitated the other direction to slide her back into bronze position. State B champion Keni Wade of Bigfork was consistent both days to move up a spot from the first day to finish as runnerup. Kylee Siefert tied fifth for all-state kudos, while Kila Cannon was a mere stroke away from making the top 15 all-state list with a sixteenth place finish.
2023 State A Golf Tournament
Sidney CC
Friday-Saturday, September 29-30
GIRLS
Team scores
1, Polson (Pol) 354-382–736; 2, Billings Central (BiC) 367-393–760; 3, Hamilton (Ham) 392-375–767; 4, Frenchtown (Fr) 408-391–799; 5, Sidney 394-414–808; 6, Dillon (Dil) 407-402–809; 7, Lockwood (Lwd) 403-410–813; 8, Laurel 415-428–843; <4: Bigfork (Bf), Browning, Columbia Falls, East Helena, Fergus, Glendive, Havre, Miles City, Park, Ronan.
Top 15 individuals
1, Katie Lewis (Fr) 79-69–148; 2, Keni Wade (Bf) 80-80–160; 3, Ashley Maki (Pol) 75-86–161; 4, Jori Haugen (BiC) 82-88–170; t5, Kylee Seifert (Pol) 85-
89–174; t5, Alivia Webinger (Lau) 88-86–174; 7, Kiaralynn Weidinger (Lwd) 88-87–175; 8, Camille Poncin (Park) 91-87–178; 9, Emma Hollingsworth (Ham) 86-93–179; 10, Skylar LaPierre (Dil) 93-91–184; 11, Anna Prill (BiC) 83-102–185; t12, Cameron Burnett (Ham) 96-91–187; t12, Bryn Cianflone (Ham) 97-90–187; t14, Alyssa Robertus (Lau) 93-95–188; t14, Anna Lende (Park) 94-94–188.
Team scores (Mission Valley abridged)
POLSON – 3, Ashley Maki 75-86–161; t5, Kylee Seifert 85-89–174; 16, Kila Cannon 91-98–189; t36, Clare Konen 103-109–212.
RONAN – 45, Mady Evelo 109-111–220.
BOYS
Team scores
1, Polson (Pol) 293-319–612; 2, Laurel (Lau) 301-313–615; 3, Corvallis (Cor) 316-319–635; 4, Park 322-319–641; 5, Billings Central (BiC) 329-339–668; 6, Hamilton (Ham) 334-368–702; 7, Fergus (Ferg) 357-354–711; 8, Ronan 357-356–713; <4: Bigfork, Browning, Columbia Falls, Libby (Lib), Hardin, Havre, Miles City, Sidney, Whitefish.
Top 15 individuals
1, Hunter Emerson (Pol) 71-73–144; 2, Brady Powell (Cor) 70-75–145; 3, Aubrey Kelley (Park) 71-75–146; 4, Carson Hupka (Pol) 70-
77–147; 5, Reece Malyevac (Lib) 72-77–149; t6, Cameron Hackmann (Lau) 71-80–151; t6, Sam Norman (Lau) 75-76–151; 8, Colin Wade (Bf) 76-76–
152; 9, Tate Jessop (Cor) 77-76–153; 10, Houston Dunn (Park) 80-79–159; t11, Otto Lund (Pol) 76-84–160; t11, Kyle Kennah (Lau) 78-82–160; t13, Espn Fisher (Pol) 76-85–161; t13, Royce Taylor (Lau) 77-84–161; t13, Caleb Fornshell (BiC) 82-79–161; t13, Carter Wichman (Ferg) 83-78–161.
Team scores (Mission Valley abridged)
POLSON – 1, Hunter Emerson 71-73–144; 4, Carson Hupka 70-77–147; t11, Otto Lund 76-84–160; t13, Espn Fisher 76-85–161; 29, Torrin Ellis 83-90-173.
RONAN – t22, Oliver Rowe 80-87–167; t32, Colter Cornwell 94-81–175; 44, Cooper Clary 93-90–183; t49, Trey Samsel 90-98–188; 55, Connor Durglo 102-99 –201.
State A < https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/9920690748552947323 >