After a grueling two-day tournament, only one Atom was able to keep his composure and qualify for the regional golf tournament. Senior Willie Labarca shot a scintillating 166 in the Sept. 21-22 tournament, putting him in the top five for the district. The top two teams from each district qualified for the regional golf tournament, while the top five individuals from the other six teams also advanced.

“I wasn’t expecting to make regionals, but I worked hard all season so I guess it paid off,” Labarca said.

As a team, the Atoms did not reach their potential, essentially shooting themselves out of the competition on the first day of the tournament. They put themselves 13 strokes behind after the first day, a deficit they were unable to overcome.

“The first day was rough, but we were able to pull it together and save our dignity on the second day,” senior Ryan Miller said. Miller shot an impressive 81 on the second day, putting his total for the two days at 170.

“On the second day of the district tournament, we scored 331 as a team, which would have beat the first place team on the first day of the tournament,” Head Coach Richard McCormack said. “Had we done as well on day one as we did on day two, we would have finished second in the tournament and been in the regional tournament.”

The tournament was supposed to take place on the Lakes Course at Twin Lakes Golf Course. However, due to construction, it was moved to the Oaks Course a week before the tournament. The Oaks Course is much more narrow and challenging, with woods lining all of its fairways. It can be especially tricky, as opposed to the wide-open Lakes Course, where losing a ball is almost difficult.

“[The change of courses] didn’t phase me at all. I play the course as it is and I played better the second day,” Labarca said. Labarca finished the first day with an 85, tied for fourth place in the district, and was able to improve on his score in the second day of competition.

“I was extremely offensive on the second day,” Labarca said.

Not all the players felt the same about their performance on the second go-around.

“We didn’t play a practice round before the second day of districts, and it greatly affected how I played. I had a chance to see what my tendencies were before the first day and it helped a lot,” senior Adam Huenemann said. He tied Labarca with an 85 on the first day but was unable to perform and shot a 92 on the second day, bringing his total to 177.

Overall, the team was disappointed with their performance and felt that they had squandered their great potential.

“The team performed well overall, but we could have done much better, with the exception of Willie who performed well both days,” Huenemann said. “Had everyone played their best both days we would have gone to regionals as a team.”

Labarca will be competing in the regional tournament on Oct. 3-4, which will be held at the same course as districts. There he hopes to continue his postseason success and secure a berth in the state tournament.

By Parker Gillcash

Sports Editor