By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
St. Henry golfers Kevin Tobergte and Will Carter shot the two lowest scores in the Region 7 boys tournament on Monday and led the Crusaders to the team title for the second time in three years.
Tobergte took medalist honors with a 1-under 71 at Boone Links. He’s the first St. Henry golfer to win a boys region tournament since 1997. Carter and Mitchell Gastright of Covington Catholic both shot 75 to tie for second place.
St. Henry topped the team standings with a 315 total that was five strokes better than runner-up CovCath. Both teams advance to the first round of the state tournament under this year’s new playoff format.
The other golfers in St. Henry’s winning foursome were Will Hammond (84) and Ben Carter (85). CovCath’s other top scorers were Nick Thapar (79), Vince DiTommaso (83) and Nathan Resing (83).
The Region 7 individual qualifiers for the first round of the state tournament are Tanner Lorms, Paxton and Palmer McKelvey and Matthew Marlette of Ryle, Adam and Tyler Brandstetter of Villa Madonna, Yuji Maruishi of Cooper, Peyton Elmore of Boone County, Kyle Flynn of Dixie Heights and Layne Masters of Conner.
Highlands won the Region 8 boys golf tournament for the third consecutive year with sophomore Hank Shick leading the way on Monday at Houston Oaks Golf Course in Cynthiana.
Shick took medalist honors with an even-par 72 and the Bluebirds won the team title with a 328 total. Campbell County placed second with a 339 to remain in the state playoffs.
The other scoring golfers on the Highlands team were Joel Craft (78), Nate Surrey (87) and Ryan Toole (91).
Campbell County’s top four scorers were Talen Beane (80), Jake Gross (85), E.J. Farmer (86) and Trevor Williams (88).
The individual state qualifiers from Region 8 include Caleb Eaglin of Newport Central Catholic and T.J. Sorrell of Bellevue, who finished third and fifth on the leaderboard.
Under the new playoff format, the top two teams and top 10 individual qualifiers from each region will compete in three first-round state tournaments comprised of regions 1-4, 5-8 and 9-12. Local golfers from Region 7 and Region 8 will play in the tournament at Heritage Hill Golf Course in Shepherdsville.
REGION 7 BOYS TOURNAMENT
at Boone Links, Florence
Top 5 teams — St. Henry 315, Covington Catholic 320, Ryle 329, Cooper 355, Villa Madonna 359.
Top 10 scorers — Kevin Tobergte (St. Henry) 1-under 71, Will Carter (St. Henry) 75, Mitchell Gastright (CovCath) 75, Yuji Maruishi (Cooper) 76, Tanner Lorms (Ryle) 77, Nick Thapar (CovCath) 79, Adam Brandstetter (Villa Madonna) 81, Paxton McKelvey (Ryle) 82, Vince DiTommaso (CovCath) 83, Palmer McKelvey (Ryle) 83, Nathan Resing (CovCath) 83.
REGION 8 BOYS TOURNAMENT
at Houston Oaks, Cynthiana
Top 5 teams — Highlands 328, Campbell County 339, Harrison County 346, Brossart 351, Owen County 369.
Top 5 scorers — Hank Shick (Highlands) even-par 72, Tristan Mitchell (Harrison County), Caleb Eaglin (NewCath), Joel Craft (Highlands), T.J. Sorrell (Bellevue).