The annual high school golf tournament attracted 14 teams to Shadow Creek Country Club in Sallisaw, where competitors teed off in soggy conditions Thursday morning.
Trevor Earls of Muldrow eventually came out on top with Sallisaw golfers Jacob Bartel and Trent Whitekiller placing second and third, respectively. The finish was reminiscent of the 2004 tournament, when Muldrow's Luke Morgan was the champion followed by runner-up Whitekiller with Sallisaw's Michael Anderson in third.
This year, Earls had the day's best round. The Bulldog junior fired a 71 to outduel Sallisaw freshman Bartel by three strokes. Whitekiller, the defending Class 4A state champion, was four strokes back at 75.
The efforts of Bartel and Whitekiller were enough to put Sallisaw over the top in the team standings. The Diamonds seized their second consecutive championship at the event with a four-player team score 312. That was 13 strokes better than second-place Poteau, which shot a 325.
Sallisaw also got a top-10 performance from David Nguyen, who shot an 81 to place ninth individually. Teammate Blaine Teague shot an 82 to round out the Diamonds' scoring and Quentin McKinney carded an 85.
Poteau, led by Zac Pool's 75, was second and Stigler placed third with a team score of 329
Muldrow came in fourth on the strength of Earls' 71 and a 79 from Blaz McMullan, who placed sixth overall. Chris Waters added a 91 and Leonard Cathey a 99 as the Bulldogs had a team tally of 338.
Roland finished ninth in the team standings with a 380. Josh Barnes led the way for the Rangers with an 87. Landon Nichols shot a 94 and Roland also got a 99 from Daxx Roberts and a 100 from Josh Niemann.
Sallisaw's junior varsity squad rounded out the top-10, finishing one stroke behind Roland. Max Knoke shot an 88 to lead the Diamonds, while Derek Waters carded an 89, Jason Metcalf a 93 and Chris Franklin a 111.
