Locals fare well in middle school tourney A
Apr. 30—Randy Herring, the Cumberland County Middle School golf coach, didn't know exactly how well his girls and boys teams would do this week in the district tournament.
Both of his rosters are filled with young players, and how they would handle the pressure of the playoffs would be a question. It is the time of the year where it is win or go home.
Well, Herring's concerns were put to rest as the CCMS girls finished second overall, while the boys finished fifth at the Golden Eagle Golf Course in Cookeville.
"The girls played pretty solid to be honest with you, especially Kinsley [Wilson]," Herring said. "She had her best round of golf of the year... at the most important time. That's very encouraging."
Wilson led the way with a 48 over nine holes to grab medalist honors. Molly Bass shot 55 and Emmee Stofflett carded a 56.
As a team, Cumberland County shot 103. White County won the team title with a 101. Prescott shot 108 and Warren County carded a 110. Algood fired a 110, Overton shot 111 and Avery Trace rounded out the scoring with a 122.
"It did surprise me a little bit about how well Kinsley played," Herring said. "I thought Molly would be the one to break 50. She shot 47 for us at our last home match at Heatherhurst Golf Course.
"Kinsley has been close a couple of times, but she seems to have one bad hole that gives her problems and really affects her. She didn't have that bad hole yesterday, so that's to her credit."
He said Bass and Stofflett played very and he could see growth in each of their games.
"I told the girls I figured we would have to shoot 100 to win," Herring said. "Well, 101 won it, and we were at 103. I think we're fortunate to be moving on to the sectional tournament."
The section tournament will be May 6 at Valleybrook Golf and Country Club in Hixson.
The CCMS boys struggled their way around the Golden Eagle course. Cumberland finished fifth overall with a score of 200.
Algood won the tournament with a 193. Pickett County was second at 194, while Avery Trace shot 194 and Warren County fired a 195. Prescott was sixth behind CCMS with a 207. Upperman fired a 212, White County shot 215, and Overton County wrapped up the scoring with a 226.
Max Vanwinkle and Ryder Flatt set the pace for CCMS with identical rounds of 48. Braxton Buffkin carded a 50, and Bryant Wilson shot 54.
"Braxton shot his average, and Ryder was two strokes under his average," Herring said. "Bryant was two strokes under his average, but Max was three strokes over his average. I am kind of surprised Max didn't play any better because he had been playing really steady for us lately."
Herring said the pressure to do well enough to qualify for the sectional tournament was high for the boys because the district is filled with talented teams.
"The Golden Eagle course was really rough, but everyone had to play it," Herring said. "The wind was wicked; it blew hard. For the young kids, that's difficult. They're not that strong in course management."
The sectional tournament will also include the top teams and individual players from the Chattanooga and Cleveland areas.
"The sectional will be 18 holes, and I think the girls will be fine," Herring said. "I think a score in the low 80s would give you a chance individually, and as a team, we need to shoot around 160-170."
