Higley tops conference, Cardinals take fourth

by Doug Sands, student writer

The Eleva-Strum varsity golf team earned two honors this week, individually and as a team, as the squad closed out the regular season with an 18-hole meet in Mondovi.

On Monday, May 18, the Cardinals suited up for one final regular-season competition against the rest of the conference. The five Eleva-Strum golfers took to the course ready to show all that they had mastered in the season. The scores from this final meet would ultimately decide the final rankings in the Dairyland Conference.

Coming in first place for Eleva-Strum was Mathew Higley, earning an 18-hole score of 77, followed closely by Drew Severson with 91, David Bemis with 107, Cole Nichols with 107, and Colin Nyseth with 110.

At Mondovi, Cochrane-Fountain City took the top spot with a combined 18-hole score of 332. Following them came Whitehall with 372, Eleva-Strum with 379, Independence with 390, Melrose-Mindoro with 392, and Alma/Pepin with 404.

Higley earned the title of conference medalist for the season, topping the rest of the conference as an individual, ultimately beating out top competitor Logan Vaningan from Melrose-Mindoro. Cardinal golfer Drew Severson also received Second Team all-Conference honors.

Cochrane-Fountain City easily snagged the first-place finish in the team round, having won every conference meet this season. Behind C-FC was Whitehall in second, Independence in third, and Eleva-Strum in fourth.

The Cardinals are eager to get started on the post-season. E-S competed at Regionals on Wednesday, May 27, at Cadott.