Gabriel Hull, Spruce Creek win Five Star Conference Boys Golf Championship
NEW SMYRNA BEACH — Monday helped Gabriel Hull feel more like his usual self.
Wins as an individual and a member of the Spruce Creek Hawks in the Five Star Conference Tournament will do that.
The junior fired a 2-over-par 74 and spearheaded the Hawks to a 307, which was 39 strokes better than runner-up New Smyrna Beach, at Sugar Mill Country Club.
Last week, Hull missed the Volusia/Flagler Championship with an illness and then didn’t love his performance (plus-7, tied for 35th) at a top-tier, two-day tournament in Palm Beach Gardens.
Now?
Health: “Still a little sick, but it’s getting better,” he said.
Golf: “I was kind of due to play good again. I didn’t really do anything great, but I would say my driver helped me because I had kind of been struggling with that recently, so I kind of got it back today.”
Along with Hull at No. 1, Spruce Creek put three others in the top five. Freshman Jacob Watson tied for second at 4-over with Barracudas senior Tyler Brewer. Junior Ben Washuta shot a 77 to claim fourth, and senior Michael Watson and his 80 rounded out the frontrunners.
The top five placers at the Five Star event are named first-team all-conference. The players who finished 6-10 form the second team, and 11-15 make up the third team. They’ll receive a certificate for their achievements.
The local linksters have only a few more days to ready themselves for the postseason. The regular season ends Saturday, and district tournaments kick off Monday.
NASCAR: Ryan Blaney doesn't measure up, Martin Truex Jr. just 'went with it,' Kyle Larson wins
Gabriel Hull’s route to victory
The top of the leaderboard remained packed for much of the day before Hull separated himself with birdies on the par-4 15th hole and par-5 17th.
“I got another stroke there that was huge,” Hull said of his birdie on 17. “But for the most part, it was just make pars and maybe make a couple birdies.”
He went 3-over par on the front nine but, spurred by those two birdies, shot 1-under on the back. He bogeyed hole 18, but because he had a multi-stroke lead, it didn’t matter. Overall, he felt more consistent than he had been the last couple weeks.
Tyler Brewer, New Smyrna Beach take second place
Brewer rebounded from a tough start — four bogeys in the first six holes — to sit atop the standings at points during his back nine.
“From there, I just figured out a little something with my swing and pieced that along the rest of the round,” Brewer said before describing the tweak. “Kind of like covering the ball more, getting over it rather than backing up. Sometimes, I do that and just start hitting it bad.”
He shot even par across the final 12 holes.
Senior Brody Kelly, who tied for first at the Volusia/Flagler Championship last week, knotted DeLand’s Logan Levon for ninth. Kelly was the only other Barracuda to join Brewer in the top 10. Junior Tucker Paldin tied for 15th.
“They pieced together some rounds, all of us,” Brewer said. “So, I’m proud of them for that. But we’re definitely a better team. We’re all better individuals than what we performed today, so we’re just hoping for better in the future.”
The All-Conference Second Team
Spruce Creek and Brewer filled the first team. The second team included talent from a few schools.
DeLand featured two entries — seniors Isak Coveney and Levon, who tied for seventh and ninth, respectively. The Bulldogs fell one stroke behind New Smyrna Beach for second place.
Pine Ridge junior Chris Kable secured sixth place, and Flagler Palm Coast senior Wynter Dodson was even with Kelly.
HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL: DeLand, Pine Ridge earn top seeds in district tournaments
Full Five Star Conference Championship results
Team standings
Spruce Creek — 307
New Smyrna Beach — 346
DeLand — 347
Seabreeze — 353
University — 397
Flagler Palm Coast — 402
Atlantic — 420
Mainland — 465
Individual top 20
1. Gabe Hull, Spruce Creek — 74 (+2)
T-2. Tyler Brewer, New Smyrna Beach — 76
T-2. Jacob Watson, Spruce Creek — 76
4. Ben Washuta, Spruce Creek — 77
5. Michael Watson, Spruce Creek — 78
6. Chris Kable, Pine Ridge — 81
T-7. Isak Coveney, DeLand — 82
T-7. Wynter Dodson, Flagler Palm Coast — 82
T-9. Brody Kelly, New Smyrna Beach — 86
T-9. Logan Levon, DeLand — 86
11. Kyler Crafton, Seabreeze — 87
T-12. Isaac Baldwin, Seabreeze — 88
T-12. Sam Garewal, Seabreeze — 88
T-12. Stanton Bonk, DeLand — 88
T-15. Bryce Love, University — 89
T-15. Tucker Paldin, New Smyrna Beach — 89
17. Austin Upchurch, Seabreeze — 90
18. Brock Williams, DeLand — 91
T-19. Kenny Capria, Pine Ridge — 93
T-19. Kaden Harvill, University — 93
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: High school golf: Gabriel Hull, Spruce Creek claim Five Star title
