Prep golf: Clovis boys pull away for win in Ruidoso

RUIDOSO — Heading into Tuesday's final round of the Leroy Gooch Tournament with a 16-stroke lead, Clovis High's boys golf team needed only to hold steady to crown itself tournament champ.

The Wildcats did a bit more than that. They not only won the Gooch title by shooting a second-day 326 for a 640 total, they also increased their lead over second-place Lovington to 26 strokes. In doing so, they captured what Clovis coach Dale Fullerton thinks is the program's first Gooch championship, though, "I wouldn't swear to it," he said.

First title or not, it was a big victory for the Wildcats, as they continue building toward state-tournament play.

"Yeah, we're excited about winning it," Fullerton said. "It's tough putting on those courses. It's good for us to practice there. We're going to play state on Pinon Hills (in Farmington) and the greens will be similar to that."

Getting out of the plains and up into the mountains should benefit the Wildcats, according to Fullerton.

"We're flatlanders," he said, "and playing on those mountain courses is different. We have to get used to them. They're kind of rolling hills on the course at Farmington."

In Tuesday's finale, David Maldonado had Clovis' best nine-hole score, firing a 39 on the back nine to go with a 40 on the front for a 79 second-day total. That back-nine finish gave Maldonado three under-40 scores out of four over the two days, after he shot a 38 and 39 on Monday. He totaled 156 for the tournament, placing him third individually.

"David Maldonado played really well," Fullerton acknowledged.

Rounding out Clovis' top four Tuesday scores were: Kolt Bennett 81 (41, 40), Christian Fontanilla 82 (40, 42) and Dakota York 84 (42, 42). Woody Casey was right behind York with an 85 (42, 43).

Their two-day scores were: Bennett 159, Casey 162, Fontanilla 164, and York 168.

Despite winning the tournament on a course that will be similar to Pinon Hills, Fullerton doesn't think his team is quite where it will need to be for state-tournament play next month.

"Not right now," he said. "I don't think we're playing as well as we can. We're certainly not putting as well as I think we can. But putting on these courses will certainly help, I think."

Overall, though, Fullerton was pleased.

"I think we're playing pretty well," he said. "I think you have slumps in golf, and at times you're putting better. Hopefully, you work the kinks out. We've got time. We've got three more tournaments, then districts."

And a coin will decide it

Clovis' girls came into Tuesday's final round hoping to lock down second place, grab a trophy.

Well, there was good news and bad news involving that. Clovis began the day three strokes behind second-place Deming and was determined to find the passing lane into second. And the Lady Wildcats did catch Deming, but pulled into a tie rather than pulling ahead, shooting a second-day 383 as opposed to Deming's 386 to make up the three strokes but no more. So after each finished the tournament at 737, was there a playoff?

No. That was the bad news.

"Basically, we flipped a coin and they got it," Clovis coach Steve Speck said. "So they got the trophy. But I say we still took second."

Clovis senior Sydni Hill wound up in a three-way tie for fourth on Tuesday, shooting an 82 to match Artesia's Taysea Powell and Alamogordo's Reagan Rhodes.

Artesia's Josey Jackson and Brehan Davis tied for the individual lead at 77, helping their team maintain its lead and win the title with 658. Lovington's Kathryn Campbell was third at 78, helping her team take fourth at 761. Alamogordo rounded out the top five at 770.

Clovis' Logan Clayton shot a 93 (45, 48), followed by teammates Ashley Maldonado at 103 (50, 53), Destiny Hodges at 105 (54, 51) and Matti Dosher at 107 (57, 50).

Despite tying for the second-day lead, Jackson won the tournament with her overall score of 153.

Hill came close to cracking the top five, finishing sixth with a 165.

"She played really well, she had two good days," Speck said. "Sydni's flirting with breaking 80, but today she lipped out like three putts and had bad luck on one hole,"

That hole was No. 12, a par-5.

"The hole placement was really, really tough," Speck said. "She had a downhill putt, and it went off the green. And then she putted back up and it came back to her. Or else she would've been in the 70s today. I really have two girls - Sydni and Logan - that are flirting with 70s. They just need to put it all together."

Still, those two and the other Lady 'Cats have been turning in solid rounds.

"I was really proud of the girls because they did catch Deming," Speck said. "I wish we could've made up a stroke somewhere so we could've had second by ourselves. But that's the way the game goes."