WINDSOR — Cooper Johnson found his game in a big way Thursday afternoon as the Middletown Mustangs clinched the outright Coastal Mountain Conference South championship with a 333-368 victory over St. Helena on a hot Thursday afternoon at Windsor Golf Club.
“Cooper Johnson came to play today, he hit all the right shots today and played great golf wire to wire,” Middletown head coach Todd Williams said.
Johnson led the South field with a 5-over-par round of 77 that included a pair of birdies. Teammate Dom Williams had the next best round at 83, including an eagle-3 on the par-5 17th hole. Williams reached the green in two shots before rolling in a 35-foot putt for the first eagle by a South golfer this season.
“Just a beautiful putt to behold,” Kelseyville assistant head coach John Berry said.
“Dom struggled on the front nine and couldn’t get any type of rhythm going. I just kept telling him that it’ll come, just stick to your game plan,” Todd Williams said. “He did just that and turned things around on the back nine with a birdie and about a 35-foot put for eagle.”
Middletown’s Bodhi Moore, the medalist a week earlier when the CMC South visited Chardonnay Golf Club in Napa, was right behind Williams with a round of 84.
“Bodhi Moore followed up his tournament win last week with another great round of 84 today,” Williams said.
While only the four low rounds count toward a team’s final score, it really didn’t matter in the Mustangs’ case with both Jackson Conley and Blake Costlow turning in 89s.
“Overall we played great today despite the hotter temperatures than we’ve played in all year,” Williams said. “We stayed hydrated and stayed focused for another tournament win.”
The heat claimed one golfer, Technology’s Sebastian Maurice.
“He suffered heat stroke on the 16th tee,” Berry said.
Maurice was playing well before that, according to Berry. He was taken to the clubhouse, given plenty of liquids and a cold towel to wrap around his neck, and slowly recovered.
“He looked white as a ghost at first, but he’s better,” Berry said.
By rule, Maurice received quadruple bogeys for the 16th, 17th and 18th holes and finished with a score of 104. Technology finished third in team scoring with 431.
Ethan Peterson’s 85 led St. Helena and Micah Meraz-Ha had 86.
For Kelseyville, fourth in team scoring with 464, Ethan Gambill led the way with 108 and Caleb Lopez had 116. Adam Astrup and Julian Armas carded rounds of 120.
The CMC South wraps up its season Tuesday at Valley of the Moon Golf Club in Santa Rosa. As South team champions, the Mustangs automatically advance to the opening round of the North Coast Section Championships May 8 at Rooster Run Golf Club in Petaluma. They’ll be joined by five other CMC South at-large golfers based on cumulative round scores Thursday and next Tuesday at Valley of the Moon.
