MISSOULA — The Missoula Sentinel boys golf team won its second consecutive Class AA state championship last week at the Meadowlark Country Club in Great Falls, placing five golfers in the top 20 on the individual leaderboard at the state meet.
No other team had more than three golfers finish in the top 20 individually.
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Jack Schaefer led the Spartans, placing eighth after last year's runner-up finish in which he lost a playoff to John Gilbert of Helena Capital. Derek Schaefer and Joseph Meusey tied for ninth, and Cole Jenkins finished 17th. Victor Grogan, just a couple of years into his golf career, was the team's No. 5 golfer — meaning his two sub-80 rounds didn't even count toward Sentinel's championship score.
"Learning from them has been super easy," Grogan said of his teammates. "They're able to show me a lot of the stuff I need to become a better player. And I think that's what's led me to to get where I am and hopefully be the 5 guy they were looking for."
That depth was a defining factor in Sentinel's run to the title.
"It's really good having that type of depth because when someone's having an off day, you know that you've got someone else there to help you out and gives you lots of support," said Derek Schaefer, a sophomore
Jack Schaefer, Derek's older brother, said having five reliable golfers changed the team's approach on the course.
"It definitely changes the game plan," said Jack Schaefer, a senior who will golf collegiately at Montana Tech. "If we only had four guys that we were confident in, we would have to play a lot safer. But having five guys that can go out there and shoot a good score on any given day is truly such a relief."
The Schaefer brothers and Meusey have been golfing together since they were youngsters. Grogan and Jenkins, both seniors, were relative newcomers to the team.
"Just this past year, my junior year, I quit playing baseball to put more time into golf, because that's what I want to do in college," Jenkins said. "And I think to finally see a state title and be fully a part of that team just really rounds off my senior year well, and I wouldn't want it any other way."
The title is Sentinel's second straight, but the Spartans faced tougher competition this year than last. They trailed Capital by one stroke after the first round but rallied to win by five — 604 to 609.
Jayce Belzer won individual medalist honors for the Bruins with a 5-under-par two-day total of 139 strokes. Capital's Gilbert was fourth.
"This year has been, compared to last year, very stressful," Jack Schaefer said. "Last year we kind of blew through everything, but this year Capital gave us quite a run for our money, and going out there and being able to beat them really means a lot."
Jack Schaefer went 76-73 at the state meet to finish with 149 strokes, one fewer than teammates Derek Schaefer and Meusey. Jenkins finished with 155 strokes, and Grogan had 157.
"We were pretty mentally tough," Meusey, a junior, added. "You know, we had a lot of adversity we faced this year, but, yeah, we were able to overcome it.
"Next year, state's back in Missoula. We'll definitely be going for the three-peat."
