Athletes representing Key West, Marathon and Coral Shores enjoyed a rare occurrence last week; members of their high school varsity golf teams played nine holes at Ocean Reef’s Dolphin Course. On a course described as exclusive, remote and dazzling, the golfers and their coaches could not agree more, as each head coach expressed excitement about the opportunity for their athletes.
Key West registered the lowest scores on the manicured course, with the Conchs winning the top four spots in the boys division and the only five in the girls. Claudia Steling beat a field of four teammates, shooting a 53 on the day. Steling, a junior, brings experience and leadership to her team and is playing very well for the start of the season. Behind Steling was a pair of sophomores. Lexi Finigan was just two strokes behind, while Charlize Lopez shot a 64. The seniors shored up the top five spots, with Monica Bueno shooting a 69 and Breanna Santanna penciling in a 71.
While Key West’s girls were competing against one another, the boys had a bit more competition. Key West won the match with a combined score of 176 to Marathon’s 196. Coral Shores was close behind in third at 201. Helping to secure Key West’s win were seniors Jackson Barroso and Peyton Zubieta, who tied at 43. Geo Twyman, a sophomore, and senior Andrew Bassett tied at 45 apiece to take the next two spots.
Next was Marathon’s Leo Mendez in fifth place with a 46. One stroke behind was fellow senior Dolphin Mason Thornton in a three-way tie for sixth place alongside Coral Shores’ senior Preston Carroll and junior Brock Bynum. Hurricane senior Tanel Irons and Dolphin sophomore Roco Piscetello rounded out the top 10 with 49 strokes each.
The teams will be seeing a lot of one another in the next few weeks, playing up and down the Keys all season long. The teams have matches at Key West, Marathon and more action at the prestigious Ocean Reef course on the schedule. The Lady ’Canes and Lady Fins will join the Lady Conchs beginning this week for some friendly competition and Basilica School could make an appearance in the coming weeks as well.
