YORKTOWN — Like the Hancock County boys golf tournament, the difference between first place and the contenders at Saturday’s Hoosier Heritage Conference meet was close.
At the May 3 nine-hole county tournament held at Hawk’s Tail of Greenfield Golf Course, Greenfield-Central edged Mt. Vernon by a mere three strokes. New Palestine was just six strokes away.
At Saturday’s 18-hole Hoosier Heritage Conference meet played at The Player’s Club in Yorktown, it was Mt. Vernon’s turn to shine.
The Marauders won the HHC title for just the second time. Both have come in the last three years. In 2021, they won with a score of 335.
They shot an 18-hole round of 322, two strokes better than second-place Pendleton Heights (324), three better than Greenfield-Central (325) and just six shots less than fourth-place Yorktown (328). New Palestine finished seventh with a 352.
“I’m real happy (for the team),” Mt. Vernon coach Tom Kirby said. “These guys are at the edge of becoming a very good golf team. We’ve had four guys that have broken 80. Last year we had just one round the entire year when someone was under 80. Now we’ve got four guys.
“Our potential is to earn our way to state, get through the sectional and get to the regional and be able to shoot a good enough score so we can go to the state (meet).”
The Marauders were led by sophomore Nils Erkmanis, who was the individual tournament runner-up for the second straight year.
Erkmanis, Yorktown’s Christian Groves and Shelbyville’s Jake Garrison each shot rounds of 77. They went to a playoff with Groves winning on the third playoff hole. Garrison was eliminated after the second hole.
“I got off to a slow start but as I got to the back nine I got a feel for my game. I didn’t have my A game, but I was hitting fairways and I was hitting the greens,” Erkmanis said of his 18-hole round. He shot a 75 last year, on the same course, to place second.
“When I got to the back nine I felt it come together and I knew I had a chance to bring my round back to life,” he added. “I didn’t think I had a chance (to win). I lost by four shots with a 75 (last year). When I found out I had 77 and in a playoff I was shocked. I tried take advantage of that. I did all that I could with the opportunity I had. I wasn’t expecting to get in (a playoff).”
A key for the Mt. Vernon victory was a round of 79 from No. 4 player Brady Pearson, earning him all-conference honors. No. 1 player Aaron Arkenau was one stroke away from making all-HHC, with an 80.
Greenfield-Central’s Tyler Young just missed out on a playoff, carding a 78. Josh Alley, the Cougars No. 1 player, finished with a 79.
“We have a strong team this year and we’re finally starting to put things all together as a team, playing well, and everyone is starting to be more consistent,” Arkenau said. “(Pearson) really showed up and had a good round. That helped us a lot. He’s been really consistent and playing good golf. I think I lost a lot of shots, but if my bad round is 80, I’m fine with that.”
Kirby’s Marauders aren’t the only county team showing great improvement and potential as the regular season winds down prior to the June 5 sectional at Hawk’s Tail.
Greenfield-Central had a pair of all-HHC players and the 324 was its lowest 18-hole score of the season.
“We’ve been making steady progress throughout each one of our weekend tournaments. The goal is to keep moving forward to get prepared for the sectional and move on to the next round,” Greenfield-Central first-year coach Cliff Henderson said.
The coach added that the season low 324 was bittersweet. It was the best round of the year, but on Saturday, it was just good enough for third place.
“We compete to win, right?” he said. “We’ve got competitive kids and they have a hunger to win. There’s a fire there. We just need to get the skill set to meet the fire and we’ll be successful. They show up to play golf, no doubt about it. They live and breathe the sport.”
Asher Cotton’s 86 also counted for the Mt. Vernon team score. Following Young and Alley for G-C, Avery Young finished with an 82 and Jon Smith, who Henderson said had been shooting in the high 90s much of the year, had a solid 86.
It was a tough day for New Palestine. Its low score was an 86, from No. 3 player Luke Cofer. Alex Cofer and Josiah Kissel each shot 88s and Nick Barada finished with a 90.
