STE. GENEVIEVE — St. Vincent delivered a complete team performance to win the 16th Annual Dragon Invitational on April 15 at Ste. Genevieve Golf Club.
The Indians posted a team score of 321 (+33) to finish 1st in a 21-team field, beating a three-way tie for 2nd — Jefferson (Festus), Valle Catholic and Farmington — all at 332 (+44).
Potosi and Fredericktown followed at 333 (+45) to round out the top 5.
St. Vincent coach Eric Clements said the win was especially impressive given the size and quality of the field, which included schools from multiple classifications.
“We had a great day. It was 21 teams, and the kids did excellent,” Clements said.
Individually, Van Buren’s Kale Burke took medalist honors with a 71 (-1), followed by Cedar Hill Northwest’s Cameron Mraz at 73 (+1). Farmington’s Tanner Welch and St. Vincent’s Colden Prost tied for 3rd at 75 (+3), while Saxony Lutheran’s Bryce Gaebler and Valle Catholic’s Samuel Kuehn tied for 5th at 76 (+4).
Prost’s round marked a milestone performance.
“Colden had his best score of his life on 18 holes, which was awesome, and got third place overall,” Clements said.
St. Vincent placed 4 golfers inside the top 15, led by Prost (75). Samuel Koishor added a 78 (+6) to tie for 7th, while Quinton Doza shot 81 (+9) to tie for 14th. Brecken Reiss posted an 87 (+15), and Adam Brickhaus rounded out the lineup with an 88 (+16).
Clements said Doza’s round was key to securing the team title.
“He was having a little bit of a rough round, but came back with an amazing back nine to help secure a big win,” he said.
The Indians also showed depth, as even their 5th score remained competitive with the rest of the field.
“Even with our fifth player, we still would have won by 10,” Clements added.
Saxony Lutheran finished tied for 11th with a team score of 350 (+62), led by Gaebler’s 76 (+4), which earned a top-5 finish. Ozzie Turner shot 87 (+15), Alex Buerck carded an 89 (+17), Allee McKee finished with a 98 (+26), and Matthew McKee added a 108 (+36).
Perryville tied for 13th at 354 (+66), with Derek Martin leading the Pirates with an 81 (+9). Aiden Wendel followed with an 84 (+12), while Mason Ehlers shot 94 (+22), Trey Lukefahr added a 95 (+23), and Jacob Bergman finished with a 109 (+37).
Clements said the team’s consistency and depth have been key throughout the season.
“What’s really cool is seeing different kids take turns being the leader each day,” he said. “They’re all coming out and trying their best every day. It’s been really fun to watch them grow.”
The tournament also featured a weather delay, but St. Vincent handled the conditions without issue.
“We had to come off for about 30 minutes, then go back out to a completely different course,” Clements said. “The kids handled it great.”
