Landon Weis overcame a tough start while Brett Engle shook off a double bogey on the 10th hole. They got there by different paths, but they finished with a pair of 71s to help Western Albemarle lock up another Jefferson District golf championship on a soggy day out at Old Trail Monday afternoon.
Western came together with a 294 to win the title, outpacing runner-up Monticello with a 310. Western’s Alex O’Dell, who picked up Jefferson District golfer of the year honors after a strong regular season, carded a 75. Brett Warnick and Hunter Weis then checked in with 77s to round out the Warriors’ scoring, with the top four rounds counting.
Weis stumbled out of the gate and was four over through eight holes. But he got into groove while making the turn and birdied nine, 10 and 11.
“I almost backed one in on nine so that got me going,” Weis said. “Then I chipped in on 10.”
He finished off the back nine with a 32 to earn the 71.
Engle was more consistent, starting with five straight pars before birding the sixth. The 10th was trouble for the Western senior.
“I made a bad double on 10 that really hurt me,” Engle said. “I hit my tee shot in the woods and had to punch out, then hit it over the green. It was hard, but if you react to it, you’re not going to be able to come back from it.”
He bounced back in short time, with a pair of birdies on 16 and 18 to get to his own 71.
Monticello didn’t put together its best round as a team, but Evan Childress’ 75 and Kevin Archer’s 77 gave the Mustangs enough to well outpace third place Powhatan, who put together a 330. Monticello couldn’t claw to within striking distance of the Warriors though. Ryan Pace and Carson Wilmer rounded out the Monticello scoring with 79s.
“I felt like we’ve worked real hard and the hard work is finally paying off,” said Monticello coach Pam Bradley. “Today they really focused and we were really successful.”
The 310 was enough to qualify the Mustangs for the Region II tournament, scheduled for next week, also at Old Trail.
Several other golfers qualified for regionals individually. Charlottesville’s Rob Bergland got in with an 80. Powhatan’s Brandon Herring, Josh Woodley, Nick Furbee got in with a 78, 82 and 84 respectively. Louisa’s Nick Morris posted a 78 to get in while teammate Joseph Azurin got in with an 84.
