Greazel defends Alliance crown, ’Cats 2nd
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MASON CITY -- In the face of adversity, Joe Greazel rose above it.
Two days after the passing of his maternal grandfather, Greazel successfully defended his Iowa Alliance Conference title by shooting an even-par 71 on Thursday at Legacy Golf Course at the 19 in Mason City.
David Adland, a proud Bobcat supporter and the proprietor of Adland Engraving & Screen Print Co., passed away on Tuesday at the age of 74.
Even without his No. 1 fan, Greazel got the job done again.
"Joe Greazel was striking it really well and it was great to see him manage the course really well," said MHS head coach Lucas Johnson. "When he was off-line off the tee, he hit some tremendous recovery shots to keep a clean card. He played the course -- which has undergone some extensive rotations under new ownership -- in the Iowa Junior Amateur in the summer, and was able to use that experience to his advantage."
Greazel was one of three Bobcats to earn all-conference (top 12) honors, but it still wasn't enough to get the conference crown back for the team.
Des Moines Roosevelt prevented Marshalltown from reclaiming its throne, edging MHS by five strokes. Roosevelt claimed the conference championship 307-312 ahead of the Bobcats after posting three of the best five scores of the day and finishing with five all-conference (top-12) performers.
Marshalltown had won three-straight Alliance team titles before being unseated by Ottumwa last fall by just four strokes. The Roughriders got the Bobcats by five on Thursday.
"Teamwise, we came up a bit short of our goal, but full tip of the hat to Roosevelt who shot their best score of the year," Johnson said.
The Roughriders were led by individual runner-up Marcus Clutter, who was four strokes back of Greazel at 75. Henry Locher also shot 75, Will Dix carded a 76, and both Myles Fulton and Hudson Kelley finished in at 81 to help Roosevelt capture the crown.
Joining Greazel in the top 12 were fellow juniors Gavin Misek and Korben McKibben. Misek shot a 78 to take seventh place, while McKibben finished at 80 for ninth. Bryson Payne, also a junior, shot an 83 to finish in 13th place -- one stroke shy of medalwinning honors.
Bobcat seniors Parker Christen and Jacob Seberger shot 84 and 86, respectively, to round out Marshalltown's roster.
"Gavin Misek got off to a rough start on his first hole of the day, but I was impressed with his ability to shake it off and get back on track," said Johnson. "I'm really proud of how well Korben McKibben has stepped up since cracking the varsity lineup. For him to start the season on our JV and end up as an all-conference player is a great feather in his cap."
Tournament host Mason City finished in third on its own course with a 318, while defending champion Ottumwa was a distant fourth (338).
The Bobcats go back to Lake Panorama National Golf Course on Monday, a week after shooting their season-high score there, for the Class 4A district golf tournament.
"Looking ahead to next week, we got roughed up a bit by Lake Panorama in the first visit," Johnson said, "but at the end of the day it was a great learning experience. We'll have a smarter approach, especially off the tee, and compete as best as we can."
The top three teams as well as the top two individuals not on state-qualifying teams advance to the state tournament.