The Victorian boys have finally done it! For the first time in 19 years they have won the School Sport Australia Championships.
Team Manager David Hutchinson was extremely proud of his team, saying it was a "well balanced performance by all". 13-year-old Nathan Page won his fourth match for the week today, an impressive feat in his debut year with the secondary team. Jasper Stubbs sealed the deal today with a 12 foot clutch putt holed on the final hole to square his match.
The girls were up against NSW in the final round. It was a must win for the Victorians and they did superbly, clinching a 4 – 2 win with number one Alizza Hetherington draining a 15 foot putt on the 17th hole. This secured second place for the Victorians however if SA were able to defeat QLD, they had a chance to snatch gold. It didn’t quite go their way, QLD went through undefeated including defeating SA 4 -2 today to take the top honours.
So the Victorians will leave with a gold and silver medal, a successful and enjoying week for all involved. A special thank you to all the parents who ventured over to support the Vics this week!
For full results please click here.
DAY TWO WRAP:
McCracken Country Club’s links style course proved challenging for the classy field at the School Sport Australia Championships (Round 3 and 4) with wind gusts up to 50km/hour it was a test both of skill and resilience.
Despite the gloomy weather Team Vic shone through triumphing over South Australia in the morning round, only losing a 2.5 matches between both the boys and girls teams. Play carried into the afternoon but due to the extreme weather round 4 was reduced to a 9 hole match play contest. So with very few holes to decide round 4 it was crucial to start with a bang against WA! Rookie Kai Shipp set the team on fire with a birdie on the first hole, which we should note was barely playable at the time! A stinging iron shot to 6ft was an impressive statement and the Vics went on to win 3.5 – 2.5 in the girls match and 5 – 1 in the boys.
Leading into the final days play our boys hold top position by a narrow 0.5 points over NSW who they will face off against in the final round. Whilst the girls are in a tie for second with NSW behind QLD, a strong win tomorrow could see the girls with a chance to snatch the honours for the first time in 1988.
Click here for full results
DAY ONE WRAP:
Following day one of the U17 School Sport Australia Championships at Victor Harbor Golf Club the Victorian boys hold top position with a clutch victory against Queensland in the morning round, followed by a dominant 5 – 1 triumph over ACT in the afternoon. In his U17 debut Nathan Page was able to sealed victories in both of his contests, setting the tone for the rest of his team mates! Other highlights included Harry Gilbert’s beautifully shaped draw shot through the trees to set up a 5ft birdie putt for the win against Luka Brucic of ACT.
The girls narrowly went down to Queensland in the morning, showing fighting spirit right to the end with Captain Linley Ooi and Alizza Hetherington both coming away with squared contests having been down for much of the morning. The girls bounced back superbly in the afternoon against ACT with convincing wins in all matches.
This places both teams in an extremely strong position leading into the final rounds to be played Thursday and Friday.
For full results click here.