SPOKANE — The Kamiak boys golf team’s depth shone through Wednesday on the second and final day of competition at the 4A State Championship at The Creek at Qualchan Golf Course.
Freshman Daniel Kim and sophomore Josh Clogston tied for fifth, and picked up the slack for their senior teammates and led the Knights to a team championship.
Kim recovered from a quadruple bogey in the middle of his round to finish with a 77 Wednesday to go along with his first-round 70 from Tuesday.
Clogston was steady all the way through, posting a 72 Wednesday and a 75 Tuesday to match Kim’s two-day total of 147.
The young Knights’ exploits, combined with Devin Kim’s top-10 finish, helped Kamiak secure the team title by three strokes over Gonzaga Prep.
That Kamiak was able hang on for the team title despite senior star Alvin Kwak’s pair of 77s Tuesday and Wednesday further illustrates the team’s abundance of talent.
“We had a freshman and a sophomore carry our team today,” Knights assistant coach Christian Kim (no relation) said. “Our depth was huge today. Every stroke counted.”
Christian Kim said that the pin placement at The Creek at Qualchan befuddled many golfers in the field, including his own.
“The course caught every team off guard,” he said. “We were making lots of birdies in our practice round, and obviously for tournaments they make those pins harder to get at. There weren’t many birdies today and yesterday. It was a battle to protect pars.”
Mount Si’s Drew Warford, who defended his championship with 71s on Tuesday and Wednesday for a total of 142, was the only golfer below par for 36 holes.
For several of the Knights, the state tournament was the second competitive outing of the week, as Daniel Kim, Devin Kim and Whistler Pascual all took part in the WJGA Players Open at The Links Golf Club in Post Falls, Idaho last Saturday and Sunday.
Those three players joined their teammates on Monday for a practice round in Spokane, just 30 miles from The Links, on Monday and rolled right into the first round of state on Tuesday.
Daniel Kim won the age 14-15 tournament with back-to-back 73s over the weekend, and Devin Kim tied for second in the 16-18 event. Both players, albeit tired, were playing high-level golf heading into the state championship.
“I couldn’t be more excited and proud,” Kamiak head coach Vic Alinen said. “They’re champions. They’re warriors. They played amazing. We had some struggles, and fell on our faces a little bit, but we played hard to come back and win it.”
4A Girls
SPOKANE — A pair of Wesco golfers were among the top 10 at Hangman Valley Golf Course, as Kamiak’s Jane Kim finished eighth and Mariner’s Jazz Caparas placed 10th on Wednesday.
Kim, who helped the Knights to a tie for sixth place in the team standings, carded a 75 Wednesday to go along with her 76 Tuesday for a 36-hole score of 151. That was nine strokes behind state champion Julia Bordeaux of Bellarmine Prep, who shot a 142.
Caparas improved on her first-round 79 with a 75 Wednesday for a two-round score of 154.
Redmond won the team title with a total of 675.
3A Boys
LACEY — Everett’s Austin Duffy placed ninth individually, and the Seagulls finished tied for third in the team standings Wednesday at Indian Summer Country Club.
Duffy recorded a second-round score of 77 after carding a 76 in the first round, which he was forced to finish early Wednesday morning after a late start and slow play forced the suspension of action Tuesday night before all of the golfers had completed 18 holes.
Duffy played Nos. 17 and 18 this morning before Everett teed off for the second round at 12:45 p.m., Seagulls coach Darrell Olson said Wednesday night.
Bellevue won the team title, with Lakeside in second and Everett and Mercer Island tied for third place.
Mercer Island’s Ethan Evans won the team title after posting a second-round 72 to go along with his 71 from Tuesday’s first round for a total of 143.
“I think our guys would tell you that they played better than they scored,” Olson said. “It was a long day at the golf course and I’m very proud of my guys. They played so, so hard out there.”
Shorewood’s Ben Borgida tied for 10th with a 154 (80-74), Everett’s Andrew Martin was 13th at 155 (76-79) and fellow Seagulls Ronny Kildall (80-76) and Andrew Olson (78-78) were tied for 15th at 156.
3A Girls
LACEY — Shorewood’s Haley Wong tied for 10th to lead local golfers at Hawks Prairie Golf Course, but it didn’t prevent Central Kitsap’s Brittany Kwon from winning her fourth championship Wednesday.
Wong improved on her first-round score of 81 Wednesday with a 79, giving her a two-day total of 160, a full 21 strokes behind the University of Washington-bound Kwon.
Arlington finished eighth in the team standings behind champion Bellevue, and the Eagles were led by Mailinh Vu’s 36-hole score of 180.
2A Boys
LIBERTY LAKE — Zach Leonen of Archbishop Murphy finished 12th at Liberty Lake Golf Course, shooting an 81 Wednesday to go along with his first-round 78 for a total of 159. That placed him 12 strokes behind Lynden’s Jordan Metcalf who shot 73-74-147 to win.
Mountlake Terrace’s Morgan Subert tied for 37th with a 36-hole score of 176 (84-92).
2A Girls
LIBERTY LAKE — Lakewood freshman Malia Schroeder finished tied for 13th in her first state tournament Wednesday at MeadowWood Golf Course, shooting an 87 Wednesday after carding an 81 Tuesday for a two-round total of 168.
Ellensburg’s Kathryn Crimp won the title with a 146 (75-71).
Jenna Suh of Archbishop Murphy tied for 23rd with a 179 (91-88).
1A Boys
OLYMPIA — Grayson Giboney of King’s posted the best second-round score in the field at Olympia Country & Golf Club on Wednesday, but he finished a shot behind state champion Gyan Bains of Charles Wright Academy for the state title.
Giboney fired a 76 Wednesday to go along with his first-round 75 to finish with a 151 over 36 holes. Bains slipped to 78 from his first-round score of 72, but held off Giboney and Seattle Academy’s Elias Malakoff.
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