By Coach Jack Rice

Friday Harbor and Orcas have a history as arch rivals when it comes to high school sports. The golf teams are no different. Orcas not only won the team B1 State tournament last year; their star, Joe Anderson won the individual title as well. It would be a heavy lift for the Friday Harbor team to compete with such a powerhouse. The Orcas boys team beat Friday Harbor by 21 shots. The girls did a little better by only losing by nine strokes.

Highlights for the day were provided by a number of players. Jack Hess, Josh Spinner and Joe Anderson are no strangers to each other. They play on their respective teams but compete against each other in Washington Junior events throughout the year. All three are underclassmen but have a reputation as some of the best talent our league has to offer. They have a strong respect for each other and have become good friends competing over the years. For Tuesday’s match, the course was set up as a par 37 with three par five’s; holes one, five and nine. The birdies were flying as Hess was able to post the best round of the year with a two under 35. It included birdies on both the par 3’s. Coach Rice preaches, “Almost anything goes well with a two on the card.” To have two of them in one nine-hole match is exceptional! One shot behind was Orcas Josh Spinner with a one-under score of 36. Defending State Champion, Joe Anderson, had a tough day with the putter but still posted a respectable 39. As the season progresses, I expect all three of these players to be contenders for individual honors at this year’s State Tournament. What a treat the spectators had in watching these three superstars play our local course!

Senior golfer, Fisher Goosman continues to improve with another fine performance. Sam Herda and Finn Graham used this match as a learning experience. They both had the wheels fall off on a couple of holes that caused their score to not reflect their true talent. They are both solid players and as the season progresses, we expect some great scores out of them.

Katie Spinogatti from Orcas with a score of 46, cut hometown Akira Tokunaga by two shots. Akira has consistently broken 50 in nearly every match so far this season. Akira and Katie both competed at the State Tournament last season. Newcomer, James Hollingsworth is showing great potential. This is only her second match and she is already playing some solid golf.

The next time we see Orcas will be at the Friday Harbor Invitational on May 2nd. Mark your calendar and come on out and watch some of the finest golfing talent our league has to offer. Were going to work hard to figure out how to pick out those 21 shots to give Orcas a run for its money.

Sam Herda tees off on the 3rd tee with Orcas players watching.

Dylan Lawson chips onto the 9th green after laying up short of the water.

Freshman James Hollingsworth enjoys the break in the weather as she plays the 9th hole.

Final scores are as follows:

Friday Harbor Boys Team

Jack Hess 35

Fisher Goosman 45

Sam Herda 55

Randy Rebhan 55 Low 4 Players 190

Finn Graham 56

PJ Nixon 57

Dylan Lawson 58

Andrew Rezabek 59

Oliver Grifo 60

Orcas Boys Team

Josh Spinner 36

Joe Anderson 39

Tim Malo 43

Kenny Farani 51 Low 4 Players 169

Levi Ashcraft 54

Hayes Richardson 56

Otto Sprenger 57

Hans Sprenger 61

Friday Harbor Ladies Team

Akira Tokunaga 48 Low 2 Players 105

James Hollingsworth 57

Lilly Taylor 64

Orcas Ladies Team

Katie Spinogatti 46 Low 2 Players 96

Lili Malo 50

Chloe Anderson/Cleavland 54

Vera Sasan 56

Jazlynn Beach 60

Contributed photo Dylan Lawson chips onto the 9th green after laying up short of the water.