GREENVILLE — Greenville High School opened the boys golf season by hosting its annual Greenville Invitational at Turtle Creek Golf Course, where 17 teams competed in one of the area’s largest early-season tournaments.
Vandalia-Butler captured the team championship with a score of 310, while Tipp City finished second at 313. Valley View and Troy each shot 316, with Valley View earning third place on a fifth-man tiebreaker. Arcanum placed fifth with a 317, and Greenville finished sixth after edging Versailles on a fifth-man tiebreaker following matching scores of 325.
One of the day’s biggest highlights came on the 17th hole when Greenville senior Michael McMahon recorded a hole-in-one.
“Congratulations to Michael McMahon for getting a hole-in-one on No. 17 today,” Greenville coach Brian Stickle said. “What a thrill for him. Many golfers play for years and never get one.”
Stickle was pleased with his team’s performance despite some early jitters.
“We played pretty decent today,” Stickle said. “The kids were a little nervous at the beginning, though they say they weren’t.”
Greenville’s Hayden Null led the Green Wave with a 79 after an impressive turnaround on the back nine.
“I am very proud of the way a few of our guys battled back on the back nine,” Stickle said. “Hayden Null had a 47 on the front then came back and finished with four birdies to shoot a 32 on the back. Brody Weaver and Hayden Burns had solid rounds. Braylon Byers had a nice round. Braylon struggled some last year but has worked on his game. Braxton Moore bounced back on the back nine and shot an 86.”
Freshman Harper Kerns made his varsity debut for Greenville.
“Freshman Harper Kerns got his first varsity match and played well,” Stickle said. “He will definitely get better as the season progresses.”
Individually, Sidney’s Leyton Goffena earned medalist honors with a 71, winning a scorecard playoff over Butler’s Tim Jacobs after both golfers finished regulation tied. Arcanum senior Luke Stephens placed third with a 73, while Versailles senior Arian Drees and Tipp City’s Grant Paulet shared fifth with rounds of 75.
Stephens once again paced the Trojans with his 73. Aiden Carlisle added a 78, Kaiden Hickey shot an 81, Kale Kramer finished with an 85, Cohen Etherington carded an 87 and Cooper Tegtmeyer posted a 93.
Arcanum coach Andrew Bryant believes the depth of this year’s squad could make a difference throughout the season.
“We had more golfers come out than maybe the Arcanum program has ever had,” Bryant said. “We had at least 15 golfers that really could compete for the varsity spots, which is pretty amazing, and we’ve had a really good start to the year.”
Bryant also praised Stephens, who qualified for the state tournament a year ago.
“Luke Stephens is coming off of state qualifying and placed really well there at the state tournament last year,” Bryant said. “We just want to keep getting better every round. The way golf works is you want to peak at the end of the season, so we’ve made a lot of good choices, and we’re learning how to get course management under our belt. We’ll be right there at the end of the season.”
Bryant said Stephens’ experience competing at the state tournament should help prepare him for both his senior season and his future.
“You put that natural pressure on yourself all year that you’ve got to get back there again,” Bryant said. “I’m more excited for his future after high school, going on to college and playing. I think that’s his goal right now, and this year will really help him for that. I know he’s going to do just fine with it. I’m really excited to see what it does to prepare him for years after high school.”
Team standings: Butler 310, Tipp City 313, Valley View 316 (won fifth-man tiebreaker), Troy 316, Arcanum 317, Greenville 325 (won fifth-man tiebreaker), Versailles 325, Sidney 328, Northmont 332, National Trail 332, Russia 333, Beavercreek 336, Newton 342, Piqua 353, Covington 379, Greenville B 393 (won fifth-man tiebreaker), Princeton 393.
Arcanum scores: Luke Stephens 73, Aiden Carlisle 78, Kaiden Hickey 81, Kale Kramer 85, Cohen Etherington 87, Cooper Tegtmeyer 93.
Greenville scores: Hayden Null 79, Brody Weaver 80, Hayden Burns 80, Braxton Moore 86, Braylon Byers 86, Harper Kerns 90.
Versailles scores: Arian Drees 75, Reece Magoteaux 81, Alex Cordonnier 84, Ethan Philpot 85, Maddox Stonebraker 89, Aiden Beisner 100.
