Brown leads strong Sidney effort

Led by senior Brendon Brown, the Red Raiders shaved 28 strokes off their previous team total, finishing second at the Sidney Invite at Hillside Golf Course Tuesday.

Scottsbluff took the top prize with a 321 total while Sidney came in at 335. The Raiders total at the shorter Rivers Edge Golf Club in North Platte last week was 363.

Laramie (339), Alliance (349) and Gering (366) rounded out the top five.

Brown had the low score for Sidney as he braved the winds, challenging pin positions and slick greens to a shoot an 81 - good enough for a 6th-place medal. Ryan Birner lost a card playoff for a medal but still tied for 10th place overall with his second consecutive 83.

Garrett Wamsley, after going even par for a seven-hole stretch--including a pair of birdies--carded an 85. Meanwhile Brady Radcliffe shaved three more strokes off his competitive best with an 86.

The promising freshman Nate Dvorak scored a 91.

"I'm proud of how the young kids played. They really stepped up today," said Raiders Head Coach Chuck Christensen. "It was nice too to see Brendon Brown play the way he's capable of playing. All these guys come in on days off and work on their games and it's starting to show."

Brown struggled in Sidney's opening match last week. But a round played with his family on Sunday perhaps foretold of his return to form. He shot 75 that day. During the tournament he recovered from a slow start to lead the team.

"After starting out so slowly, it wasn't a bad round considering the pin placements and wind," said Brown. "I still need to improve a little on my short game but I'm pretty satisfied with the day."

After starting on the 15th hole, Brown kicked his round into gear when he reached the par-5 second. He birdied the hole after knocking a solid drive down the left side then laying up short of the green with a six iron. He followed by flying a sand wedge about 20 feet past the hole before draining the putt.

It was a fast down-hill putt that could have raced past the cup if not handled properly.

"It had about two feet of break to it," said Brown. "That hole kind of jumped me out of my slow start and I played pretty well from there."

One of the scariest greens the players faced was the ninth. Many players walked away after taking three and four putts. Part of the problem was the slow pace of grass growth this time of year coupled with the strong winds. With the hole cut towards the front of the green, it was hard to keep approach shots under the pin.

Brown was one who had a frustrating experience on the ninth.

His second putt paused on the lip for several seconds then began to roll backwards after being urged on by a gust of wind.

It traveled back about seven feet before it finally stopped. But Brown kept his cool and minimized the damage by draining the comebacker.

Though Birner managed to two putt the ninth, it wasn't exactly in a conventional manner. His first stroke rolled off the green, forcing him to chip back on. His second attempt was the charm as he drained a lengthy one.

"On a lot of greens on the back it was kind of hard to keep the ball in place," Birner said. "The greens were really fast and I didn't like that one bit."

Nevertheless, Birner handled the challenging conditions well. The sophomore had the additional pressure of playing in the No. 1 spot against the top players from three other schools. Tuesday was the first time he had taken on that responsibility. Though his irons were "going every which way," his short game was consistent throughout his round.

"The first few holes I was very nervous being in a group with those really good players," Birner said.

Wamsley opened his day in red-hot fashion. With the shot-gun start he began on the 17th hole. He promptly birdied 17 and 18. On 18 he stuffed a wedge two feet from the cup and drained the putt. While he didn't have quite as much magic on the back nine, he still played solidly.

"It was an alright round but I'm still not there. I still think I should be shooting in the 70s," said Wamsley. "On the back nine I just hit too many bad chips or I could have had a really nice round."

Radcliffe was only moderately pleased by shaving three strokes off his previous best competitive round.

"My putting was so bad," he said. "If I was putting better I could have shot an 80. I was hitting my driver straight and long all day."

Radcliffe three putted the first three holes he played. He also joined the large group of players who took three putts on the ninth.

"This is a lot tougher course than we played last week," Radcliffe said. "So overall I'm happy with the round. Except for the putting it's pretty much how I would have wanted it to go."

Nate Dvorak also improved despite the tougher Sidney track. In his second career varsity outing, the long hitting freshman shaved seven strokes off his effort from North Platte.

The Raiders will make their way to Hastings for their next outing on Apr. 17. The shot-gun start is scheduled for 9 a.m. CDT.

Sidney Invite

Team Scores

1. Scottsbluff 321

2. Sidney 335

3. Laramie 339

4. Alliance 349

5. Gering 366

6. Chadron 379

7. Ogallala 391

8. Torrington 411

Top-10 Individual Scores

1. Koy Pothoff, Scottsbluff 75

2. Bret Guth, Torrington 78

3. Alec Burk, Chadron 79

4. Austin Kaufman, Gering 80

5. Curtis Welsh, Scottsbluff 81

6. Brendon Brown, Sidney 81

7. Robbie Harding, Laramie 81

8. Jonah Wright, Scottsbluff 82

9. John Murdock, Laramie 82

10. Jared Pilkington, Scottsbluff 83

Sidney Scores

1. Brendon Brown 81

2. Ryan Birner 83

3. Garrett Wamsley 85

4. Brady Radcliffe 86

5. Nate Dvorak 91

Hillside Golf Course

April 5