High school golf: Palm Beach County teams claim region titles, what to know before state

States are just days away for Palm Beach County high school golfers and not just one, but four local teams are heading to Howey-in-the-Hills as region champions.

After falling short of region titles last fall, the boys of Jupiter, the reigning 3A state champ, and Benjamin brought home the hardware this week. The Warriors shrugged off 2022's second place finish and replaced it with a winning scorecard of 285 on a windy day at Plantation Preserve Resort and Club.

On the Estates Course at PGA National, a three-way tie between the Bucs, Oxbridge, and Pine Crest took place, all shooting 295 although Benjamin ultimately walked away with the Region 4-1A trophy.

As for the girls, Jupiter and FAU High avenged last fall's runner-up finishes. Clinching the first of three region championships for Jupiter High this week, the Warriors won with a team total of 324 to advance for Class 3A. The defending 1A state champion Owls shot a 284 to deny 2022 victor, Sagemont.

Meet the individual champions

A region title for Jupiter was sealed by a tie for first between Warrior teammates Tristan Wieland and Talan Wilkes. Each shot a 69, which Wieland also turned in last Monday at The Park in West Palm to take second in the tournament for District 13-3A, where the Warriors placed runner-up to champion Palm Beach Gardens.

"Me personally, I've always worked on every part of the game and this season, I started putting time in the gym because I know at the college level, training off the course is just as important as on the course," Wieland said, a back-to-back selection to 2023's Team Florida roster, which hosts the top 40 golfers, ages 13 to 18, from around the state.

"Team Florida has been amazing," Wieland said. "Being a member for the second year in a row and winning both years has helped me understand the importance in being a good teammate and allowing my individual performance to contribute to the overall team environment, just like we have on the Jupiter high school golf team."

When asked where he's seen the most improvement in his play this fall, there wasn't just one particular area. Wieland has seen himself become a "complete player" this fall, and he knows it's showing up in his scores and finishes.

Region 4-1A saw the same result with Oxbridge Academy's Colonna AJ and Asin Ignacio of Divine Savior Academy in Doral both shooting 69 to tie for boys individual champs.

Catherine Andino of West Boca Raton was the area's lone individual champion for girls with a final scorecard of 70 to win Region 4-3A at Royal St. Cloud Golf Links.

Pre-state pre-reads

Jupiter's boys battled the brutal effects of Hurricane Nicole last fall to capture the program's first ever state championship and the county's first title in the sport since 2010, putting together five Top 20 finishes of 75 or under for a team total of 297 (9-over). Boca Raton turned in a 303 for a fourth place finish and the area's second-best finish at 3A states, but won't return critical scorecards turned in by graduated seniors Alex Heard and Jack Kantowski.

The Bobcats had the county's third-best outing at Region 4-3A on Wednesday. However, they finished sixth overall, 10 strokes away from tying 2023 contender Gardens' 297 for third.

"Returning to state championships to defend our title has all of us fired up and us winning regionals shows how much this means to the entire team," Wieland said. "The Jupiter golf team is a very close group and everyone has experienced what that team environment feels like. Our coach Bruce Wasserman has a word we've been using this year to bring us together."

Wieland said coach Bruce Wasserman has been bringing the Warriors together this fall with a single word: cohesion.

"We joke around about it, but it seems to have worked for a public high school team to come together. That's rare," Wieland said. "What's even more rare is this has happened for the past three seasons. I guess we just have a good time and enjoy playing together."

Based on Monday's regional result in Class 1A, Benjamin and FAU High will be in a tight battle for the boys trophy, currently held by the Owls after carding a 294 (6-over) through 18. 2022 Boys Golfer of the Year and now-senior Jack Quinn's low round of 70 also secured the individual title.

FAU's girls were led to a third overall team finish with a low score of 68 for Amelie Phung, looking to clinch the individual championship she came just four strokes shy of at 1A state championships last fall. The team at St. Andrew's shot a 303 to tie for fifth, coming second to the Owls in this year's region tournament.

Class 3A will kickoff state championship competition on November 10 and 11 at Mission Inn Resort and Club. The tournament for Class 1A is set to wrap things up on November 14 and 15.

More top finishes from regionals

Boys

Region 4-1A

Tyler Bruneau, Benjamin ‒ 73, tied for third

Hampton Beebe, Oxbridge ‒ 71, tied for fifth

Liam Ly, St. Andrews ‒ 71, tied for fifth

Jude Desmond, FAU ‒ 71, tied for fifth

Jack Quinn, FAU ‒ 72, tied for 10th

Brooks Colton, Benjamin ‒ 72 tied, for 10th

Lawson Ford, Cardinal Newman ‒ 73, tied for 16th

Mateo Desmond, FAU ‒ 75, tied for 17th

Pavel Tsar, Benjamin ‒ 75, tied for 17th

Region 4-3A

Stefan Daley, Dwyer ‒ 72, tied for ninth

Reed Greyserman, Spanish River ‒ 72, tied for ninth

Brayden Jenard, Jupiter ‒ 73, tied for 11th

Ryder Kenney, Palm Beach Gardens ‒ 73, tied for 11th

Jacob Kutner, Palm Beach Gardens ‒ 73, tied for 11th

Michael Feldman, Spanish River ‒ 74, tied for 15th

Wylie Inman, Palm Beach Gardens ‒ 74, tied for 15th

Willy Jun, Jupiter ‒ 74, tied for 15th

Ben Bostwick, Wellington ‒ 74, tied for 15th

Girls

Region 4-1A

Staci Pla, Berean Christian ‒ 72, tied for third

Yvette O'Brien, Grandview Prep ‒ 72, tied for third

Maddie Hyndman, Oxbridge ‒ 73, fifth overall

Claire Luce, Oxbridge ‒ 76, eighth overall

Leelou Girault, King's ‒ 79, 11th overall

Callie Nelson, King's ‒ 80, tied for 12th

Region 4-2A

Keira Harper, Suncoast ‒ 95, 10th overall

Region 4-3A

Zoe Shamy, Jupiter ‒ 71, second overall

Jayden Loyacona, Spanish River ‒ 73, third overall

Summer Pilot, Boca Raton ‒ 75, fourth overall

Gaelle Summers, Spanish River ‒ 78, seventh overall

Keala Richichi, Jupiter ‒ 80, tied for ninth

Ava DuMond, Park Vista ‒ 80, tied for ninth

Madison Lowenstein, West Boca Raton ‒ 82, tied for 14th

Madyson Barone, Jupiter ‒ 84, tied for 16th

Emilee Smarr is a sports reporter for the Palm Beach Post. She can be reached via email at esmarr@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach golf teams claim region titles, what to know before state