Croy Captures State Medal

Following day one at the Class 2 MSHSAA Boys Golf Championships at Fremont Hills Country Club in Nixa, Trenton’s Lathan Croy found himself within striking distance of a state medal.
On day two, Croy struck.
The Trenton junior chopped four strokes off his first round total, shooting a second round 78 for a two-day score of 160. The jump was enough to propel Croy from 22nd up inside the top 15 for that coveted state medal. Croy would finish in a tie for 14th, giving the Bulldogs their second individual state medal in as many years.
“Lathan really put together a great score on Tuesday to make up a few spots and earn a medal and all-state recognition,” Trenton Coach Travis Mullenix said. “It wasn’t easy – he had to pull off some great recovery shots to end up where he did.
“He has come a long way this year and improved his game tremendously. I’m very proud of him and look forward to his senior year.”
Nate Swann, who tied for 14th at last year’s state tournament, just missed in his bid for back-to-back state medals, finishing day two with a score of 82. The mark gave him a final standing of 23rd individually with his tournament total of 166.
“Nate was just a few swings away from another all-state performance but just couldn’t pull it all together,” Mullenix said. “We all know he’s a great golfer and I look forward to seeing what he can do at the next level at NCMC. He’s had a great career at THS and I’ll definitely miss him.”
Also in action at the state tournament was Corbyn Guile. He carded an 84 on day two, a big turnaround from his opening round 97. His two-day total of 181 ranked him 53rd individually in an 89-golfer field.
“Corbyn really turned it around on day two and played extremely well,” Mullenix said. “I’m very happy that he was able to make it back to state. That was the goal and he was able to accomplish it. He has come a long way with his mental approach to the game and I think that is why he was able to play as well as he did this year.”
Atop the leaderboard for the second year in a row was Jack Parker of Father Tolton Catholic, who won his second-straight individual state championship with a score of 140, shooting an opening round 68 and a 72 on day two. LeBlond’s Hank Leirz was second with a 141, going 69 on day one and 72 on day two. LeBlond’s Brooks Jungbluth, who was the leader after day one at 67, shot a 79 on day two, finishing fourth individually with a total of 146.
“The course conditions were pretty tough,” Mullenix said of day two. “The sunshine was out but it was still very wet and the greens weren’t holding hardly any approach shots. The wind really picked up on day two as well, which made it even more difficult. That being said, all three of our guys managed to play better on day two which was not the case for most of the better golfers on the course.”
In the team standings, Hermann laid claim to the state title, tying Palmyra with team scores of 627. The fifth score was used to break the tie. Hermann’s fifth golfer carded an 89, while Palmyra got a 91 from the fifth spot. LeBlond placed third with a 649 and Blair Oaks and Maryville rounded out the top five with scores of 664 and 673 respectively.
At the Class 1 state tournament at Silo Ridge Golf and Country Club in Bolivar, Gallatin captured its second-straight state championship, but like the Class 2 tournament, a tiebreaker was needed. Gallatin and Greenwood both finished the tournament with team scores of 677. Gallatin’s fifth golfer score was 92, however, 10 strokes better than Greenwood’s fifth score of 102, giving the Bulldogs the title.
Marceline, meanwhile, dropped to fourth in the Class 1 tournament on day two, finishing with a team score of 701, 18 strokes behind third-place Lincoln, which finished at 683.