THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 6, 1996 TAG: 9610040235
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 29 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL LEFFLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: 57 lines
THE LONG STRING of Southeastern District golf tournament victories by Great Bridge has finally come to an end.
After six consecutive tournament wins, the Wildcats placed second to Nansemond River in the two-day, 36-hole competition that ended Tuesday at Sleepy Hole.
Nansemond River posted rounds of 323 and 334 for 657. Great Bridge finished with 337-338-675.
But Great Bridge coach Chris Osmon didn't attach much significance to the outcome. His Wildcats had already qualified as the No. 1 seed from the district to the Eastern Regional by virtue of winning the regular-season title.
Osmon used the tournament to give several of his players post-season experience. He employed three different players in the second round from round one.
Consequently, only three of the Wildcats were eligible for medalist honors. And each of them made a good run at the title.
Pat McDuff finished third with 165. Bud Cahoon tied for fourth with 166 and Mike Nemcosky tied for sixth with 169.
Shaun Robertson of Nansemond River was the medalist with a total 78-80-158. Another Warrior, Evan Spivey, was runner-up with 161. Nansemond River's Michael Bynum tied with Cahoon for fourth.
Western Branch joins Great Bridge and Nansemond River in the Oct. 15-16 regional, which has its opening round at Williamsburg Country Club and second round at Sleepy Hole.
The Bruins placed third in the district meet with a 347-366-713. Western Branch coach Wayne Peterson was among the many who disliked the difficult pin placements for the closing round.
``The 18th hole was so tough that a seven was a good score,'' Peterson said. ``We should not be determining region spots by luck.''
Only two players in the entire field - Chris Taylor of Indian River and Paul Shagena of Nansemond River - managed to par the hole (par 4). The pin was placed at the front edge of the green on a slope. Numerous players putted up and then watched the ball roll back beyond where they putted from. Two players had 12s on the hole.
In addition to the Great Bridge and Western Branch teams, four other Chesapeake players gained region berths on non-qualifying teams. These included Jeremy Carroll of Deep Creek (169), Bryan Belangia of Oscar Smith (172), Taylor of Indian River (173) and Brannon Abrams of Indian River (176). Abrams defeated teammate Keith Vasconcellos in a one-hole playoff. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photos by MARTIN SMITH-RODDEN
Pat McDuff, left, and Bud Cahoon of Great Bridge High School were
part of the youngest team in the Southeastern District on the golf
course this season. They won the regular season title and entered
the Southeastern District tournament with the No. 1 regional berth
under their belts. They finished second to a near-perfect Nansemond
River team in the district.
KEYWORDS: HIGH SCHOOL GOLF by CNB