Golf rolls past York and ties with Tabor in KCAC Match Play
The Threshers come away with a handful of strong showings in the round-robin format.
DODGE CITY — Last week, the Bethel golf team was in action at KCAC Match Play. Bethel found themselves in the bottom three seeds of the tournament going into the weekend, meaning they would play a round-robin with the other two teams at the bottom. First, faced off against Tabor.
“Match play is different from stroke play in that you’re playing one specific opponent instead of the entire field so you can focus only on that player,” head coach Gregg Dick said. “I felt like we competed very well in this format and challenged the team to compete at that level in stroke play as well.”
First up for the Threshers was senior Cade Dudley, who tied with his opponent from the Bluejays. Junior Luke Riffel would win his match at 6&5 after leading his opponent from the first tee. Senior Kyle Belvin fell to his opponent from Tabor at 4&2. Junior Nathan Gutierrez would trail his opponent for nine straight holes to end up coming back in the back nine to beat his opponent up two.
Finally, freshman Caleb Koontz would fall to his opponent after tying seven of the holes, ultimately causing Bethel to end up tying with the Bluejays.
“We fought hard and probably should have beaten Tabor but we ended in a tie with them having some very good competitive matches,” Dick said.
The next day, the Threshers took on York. The Panthers only had four golfers entered, meaning Dudley would not face off against anyone. Belvin held a lead most of the match, winning 2&1. Gutierrez had an easier matchup, winning after just ten holes 9&8. Koontz would pick up a victory, winning 6&4. Riffel did not need long to take care of his opponent, after just 12 holes, he would win 9&6.
“On Tuesday the guys just took care of business with York, which was nice to see,” Dick stated. “I felt our team chemistry continued to grow as well on this trip as the guys really enjoy being together, encouraging each other, and having fun together.”
The Threshers are back in action Monday and Tuesday in the Tabor Tournament at Sand Creek Station in Newton.