Jackson golf outduels rival Poplar Bluff to reclaim SEMO Conference title

Despite windy conditions at Fox Haven Country Club in Sikeston, the Jackson boys’ golf team prevailed as SEMO Conference Tournament champions on Monday, defeating runner-up Poplar Bluff by nine strokes.

Jackson sophomore Ian Lambert and junior Jake Miller finished first and second in the tournament with 75 and 76 strokes respectively on Fox Haven’s par-71 course.

“I thought our boys hung in there and battled it out,” Jackson coach Zack Walton said. “We didn't have a real good start. I know we started off with some bogeys and some doubles, I think we even had a triple in there right off the bat. Our boys hung in there and played pretty good.”

Jackson finished with a round score of 312, comfortably ahead of Poplar Bluff’s 321 score. Sikeston followed in third with 353, just a stroke ahead of Dexter and Notre Dame’s tie in fourth at 354. Cape Central (366), Saxony Lutheran (390) and Caruthersville (413) all put golfers inside the top 20 but came up short in the round.

Both Jackson and Poplar Bluff finished with four golfers inside the top eight. Corab Thomas of Poplar Bluff and Bradley Loos of Jackson tied in third with 78 strokes, while Lawson Barks (80), Andrew Miller (81) and Caiden Luke (82) went 5-6-7. Jackson’s Marshall Earnhardt finished in a tie for eighth with Sikeston’s Henry Arndt at 83 strokes.

“We have a lot of really good golfers,” Walton said. “You know, we go 9-10 deep on our squad. Many of these kids could break into the top five, and we’ve got a lot of kids who are probably sitting at home right now that could be top five in some other schools.

“It just goes to show that we have a lot of really good golfers. Jackson has a lot of kids that are just dedicated to playing year-in and year-out.”

Notre Dame’s Luke Gilmore stood alone in 10th with a score of 84, while Dexter’s Ben Christian and Notre Dame’s Thurston Edwards both finished with 85 strokes in a tie for 11th. Dexter’s Banks Nesselrodt and Poplar Bluff’s Kole Bader placed 13th at 86 strokes each.

Sikeston’s Will Lape placed 15th with an 87 score, followed by teammate Harrison Arndt at 88. Saxony Lutheran’s Tom Hasz, Caruthersville’s Thomas Hays and Cape Central’s Ben Broeckling all finished in a tie for 17th at 89 strokes. Jackson’s Dru Eller and Cape Central’s Evan Dombrowski finished in a tie for 20th, rounding out the top 20 at 90 strokes each.

After a slow start, Jackson continues to build steam as it nears postseason play after emerging victorious against district rival Poplar Bluff. As the two depart from their meeting in Sikeston, the focus shifts to their looming rematch at the Class 5 District 1 Tournament on Thursday.

“Golf is a little bit different – you never know,” Walton said. “I mean, I have five guys out there right now that are playing for us, and our top five – they can all shoot really close to even par.

“If we're all playing really well on the same day? Yeah, I definitely think we could win us a district title and move on from there to compete at state. That's golfing. It means everybody's got to be clicking on the same day.”