LaGRANGE, Ohio -- Rocky River has captured its seventh Great Lakes Conference title by placing second in Monday's GLC Tournament. The Pirates carded a 322 in soggy conditions at the par-72, 6,240-yard Grey Hawk Golf Club. That total was bested by the Bay Rockets, who fired a 319. But the league's scoring system for determining its annual champion -- a format valuing performances Monday as well as in the GLC Preview Tournament and matches between member teams -- rewarded the Pirates as the best of a 12-team bunch for the seventh time in the eight-year (2015-present) history of the Great Lakes Conference.
On Monday, the Pirates got big performances from juniors Luke Dietrich and Nick Tianello. Dietrich birdied three of the first six holes on his way to a 36-38--74. Dietrich successfully navigated Grey Hawk's wet rough in his round: he turned just two fairways hit off the tee into 14 greens in regulation. His 74 earned GLC Tournament medalist honors.
Tianello rallied after a rocky start to post a 37-39--76. He keyed his 37 on the outward nine with a chip-in eagle on the par-5 fourth hole. And that just a half-hour or so after double-bogeying the first hole. Tianello was sharp off the tee, hitting 10-of-13 fairways, and he was a closer on the greens -- after No. 1 anyway -- finishing with a team-best 29 putts.
Owen Toole (43-43--86) and Jack Hurt (42-44--86) logged River's third and fourth scores.
Bay, Rocky River, and Westlake (326) separated themselves from the rest of the field in the league's final event of the season.
"I couldn't be prouder of our kids and the work they continue to put in their games," said coach David Hendrickson, who has been at the helm of River Boys Golf for six of the program's seven championships. "It was great to see how everyone stepped up to play well. What a great day for our program."
For the round, the Swinging Corsairs hit fairways at a 59.6% clip and greens at a 44.4% rate. The Pirates averaged 31.8 putts per man.
When the points were tallied to determine the GLC champ (one for a match win, three for a league tournament win, 2-1/2 for second, etc.), the Maroon & White ticked a few points higher in another statistic: Rocky River has now won GLC crowns at an 87.5% clip.
CANNON FIRE ...
DYNAMIC DUO: With Luke Dietrich and Nick Tianello filing their 74-76 combo to lead River in scoring Monday, it marked the 11th time this season the junior standouts have finished within two strokes of each other in an event. For the season, Nick Tianello has been the Pirates' top scorer with a stroke average of 75.8. Luke Dietrich has clocked an average of 76.1.
ALL-CONFERENCE NODS: The GLC determines its all-conference teams via season scoring in GLC events. With the circuit wrapping up play Monday, three Double-R linksters (Dietrich, Tianello, Owen Toole) earned First Team All-GLC status. Dan Capka and Wes Bennett were tabbed as Second Teamers. Jack Hurt earned an honorable mention.
by Skip Snow
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