BAXTER SPRINGS — Iola senior Brennen Coffield will make a bid for a state title after taking fourth place at Monday’s loaded sub-state tournament.
With three of Kansas’ top- four ranked teams competing in the same sub-state tournament, tickets to the state tournament were in short supply, but Coffield punched his by carding a 77 on the par 72 course.
“This is four years in a row for Brennen, and it’s quite an achievement,” Coach Jeremy Sellman said. “That’s an accomplishment and I’m proud to be a part of that. It shows the level of dedication and hard work he’s put in to get where he’s at today.”
Coffield finished four strokes behind tournament champion Cole Palmer of Wichita Trinity, whose team finished second. Coffield shot a 40 on the front nine, then shaved a few strokes for a 37 on the back nine.
With questionable field conditions, worsened by intermittent storm delays, Coach Sellman liked how Coffield played under the circumstances.
“Brennen struggled, and was missing a lot of fairways, but was getting up and down,” Sellman said. “He also had maybe four or five three-puts that turned into bogies. All the puts he missed, they just lipped out. That’s how the day went for everybody.”
Baron Folk, Iola senior, tees off during the Pioneer League Championship earlier this month.
Junior Ean De La Torre finished 30th and was 10 strokes from making the individual cut for the state tournament. Despite having his season cut short, Sellman said De La Torre played his best round of golf all season. He shot a 47 on the front nine, then shaved a stroke off the back nine to card a 93 overall.
“He had a great day and played his best round of golf, for the conditions, this year,” Sellman said.
Senior Baron Folk ended his high school career in 35th place. Sellman said weather and course conditions impacted Folk’s play as he struggled to generate momentum in the early goings. He opened with a 49 on the front nine, then improved two strokes on the back to card an overall 96.
“Baron struggled a little bit, but he played great,” Sellman said. “He just could not get up and down the course. He struggled with chipping and putting.”
An equipment malfunction plated sophomore Isaiah Geisler in 52nd place. Despite breaking his driver and relying on his irons for much of the course, Geisler carded a 103. He opened by shooting a 55 on the front nine, then shaved seven strokes on the back while adjusting to life without a driver.
“Isaiah was playing well, then his driver broke,” Sellman said. “That put him behind the eight ball, not having that club to get off the tee on those longer holes.”
Sophomore Cole Hines finished 62nd out of 71 competitors, carding a 113. He opened with a 57 on the front nine, then slightly improved on the back nine with a 56.
“Cole started really strong, but just got a little tired at the end,” Sellman said. “He slipped off, got a little sloppy, but this was a good experience for him as a sophomore.”
As a team, the Mustangs finished sixth overall with a combined score of 369. Sellman’s only regret from Monday was knowing, were the Mustangs in any other sub-state tournament, they would likely have qualified as a team for next week’s tournament in Topeka.
“With the way things went, and the conditions of the course, it wasn’t the greatest,” Sellman said. “We had some rain and it made it tough for everybody. It was what it was. Trinity and Wichita Collegiate are teams that are hard to beat.”
