A two-week delay, thanks to weather, did nothing beyond delay the golfers of the Monsignor Martin high school athletic association. Originally scheduled for October 9th, a 10-hour downpour forced a 2-week postponement. On October 23rd, the Tan Tara golf club was prepped for the event and the tournament went off as scheduled.
The All-Catholic championship serves multiple purposes. It identifies team champions in the A and B divisions. In addition, it recognizes the best six golfers (and ties) as members of the All-Catholic team. Finally, golfers who record a score of 80 and lower earn a spot in the New York state catholic high school athletic association’s state championship, held each spring near Poughkeepsie.
Team Competition
The regular-season champions of the league were expected to provide the greatest firepower at Tan Tara. In division B, St. Mary’s of Lancaster played true to form, and captured the 2017 tournament title by a healthy 65 strokes over runners-up Gow School. In division A, St. Joseph’s and St. Francis earned a share of the regular-season crown, setting up a battle for supremacy in North Tonawanda. When the final putts were holed, the Red Raiders of St. Francis had secured a 9-stroke win over a resurgent Nichols squad, with Canisius 3rd and St. Joseph’s in 4th.
St. Mary’s of Lancaster
The Nichols story bears a bit of light. The Vikings were hit hard by injuries this season. Their #2 golfers broke his wrist after the first week of competition, and was lost for the remainder of the regular season. Another member of the top six suffered a concussion in week three, and was on protocol for the next three weeks. With the entire team together at Tan Tara, the Vikings produced its best effort of the season.
St. Francis
Individual Competition
Twelve golfers had qualified on to the NYSCHSAA state championship before the tournament, by virtue of averaging 40 or better for a minimum 7 league matches. At Tan Tara, an additional 5 golfers advanced to state-level play by shooting 80 or below. In order to make the All-Catholic team, a score of 79 or better was required, and 8 golfers tied for 6th spot or better. Mike Tomczak of St. Francis was the tournament medalist, recording a score of 74, or 2 over par. A pair of strokes behind the winner was Matthew Jackson of Canisius, at 76. Third place went to Gabriel Schulefand of Nichols and Mike Beecher of Canisius. Complete lists of qualifiers and the tournament team are below.
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All-Catholic Tournament Team
