'Our goal all year': Medalist Silas Kirkpatrick leads Green boys golf to state tournament

HINCKLEY — Silas Kirkpatrick was in a great spot to make the OHSAA Division I boys golf state tournament when his round ended.

The Green High School senior was hoping for a lot more, though. Closing out the season on Firestone County Club's North Course wouldn't be the same without his teammates playing with him.

A few nerve-wracking hours later, Kirkpatrick's wish came true. The Bulldogs qualified for the state tournament with a runner-up finish in the district at Pine Hills on Monday, Oct. 6. Kirkpatrick was the medalist with a 3-under 68.

"This has been our goal all year," Kirkpatrick said. "I think we were doubted a lot. I really don't understand why we were so doubted because we put in so much work. We fought until the end of every single tournament.

"I'm proud of what we've done. It's going to be satisfying to say we made it there."

Green finished five strokes behind district champion St. Ignatius with a 298. Hoban and University School earned the other two state berths with 300s.

Chad Tietz shot 76 for the Bulldogs. Jackson Keller and Shane Bates fired 77s to round out the scoring.

There was little room for error for Green ... or any of the state contenders. The Bulldogs finished three shots ahead of Jackson and Hudson, who missed state berths by just one stroke.

The Bulldogs were on the outside looking in when their round ended. They needed a few teams ahead of them to fall over the next few hours. The waiting was intense.

"I knew I made it individually, but that wasn't satisfying," Kirkpatrick said. "I wanted the team to come with me. It was a long wait, but I felt like we had done enough. We put a lot of work in this season, and it showed eventually. But yeah, it was a pretty grueling wait to be honest."

Kirkpatrick's finish helped the Bulldogs stay in the top four. He bogeyed 16, but was able to par 17 and 18 to become the only player to break 70.

"Those were pretty tough moments," Kirkpatrick said. "I knew I had to hold it strong and not let anything else happen. Getting up and down from the bunker on 17 catapulted me to 18. That gave me the strength I needed to finish."

Three birdies on the front nine quickly put Kirkpatrick in medalist contention. He also birdied 11.

"My tee to green today was pretty solid," Kirkpatrick said. "I was finally seeing putts roll. It has been awhile. I feel like I kind of got that back."

Jackson's Ben Young earns individual state berth

Jackson sophomore Ben Young earned one of the four individual state berths. He birdied his final hole to finish sixth overall at 1-over 72.

"I was really just hitting fairways and hitting greens," Young said. "I was just putting everything close and two-putting them."

Starting on No. 10, Young regrouped after back-to-back bogeys on 3 and 4. A clean finish helped him grab a state berth.

"I said to myself I still had a chance at it," Young said. "I just had to make pars, make a birdie and get in."

Reach Mike at [email protected]

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This article originally appeared on The Repository: Green High School boys golf team advances to OHSAA state tournament