The SEU boys had a Day 2 team score of 335 to finish with a two-day total of 656. Fertile-Beltrami took first with a 629, while Legacy Christian Academy finished second with a 642.

SEU’s top golfer after two days was Carson Erickson, who shot an 85 to finish 21st overall with a 159. Toby Weiss shot an 81 on Wednesday to climb and finish 22nd overall with a two-day total of 160. Also for SEU, Logan Netzke shot an 80 on Wednesday to finish with a 162 and take 28th overall, while Jack Nelson (95, 181, 62nd), Jacob Schultz (89, 192, 74th) and Allen Arneson (96, 196, 78th) rounded out SEU’s team.

First-year SEU head coach Bryant Mages said that while Day 2 didn’t go quite as planned, he was still proud of his guys for making it to state and finishing third.

“After Day 1, it was really exciting to see us contending for a state title,” Mages said. “They all kind of saw in 2018 when that team won a state title and it was really tight down the stretch, so it was cool to have that experience again this year. Obviously today we didn’t play as good as we could have played, but, overall, it was a really successful season and I’m really proud of the guys.”

Staff photo by Jeremy Behnke New Ulm Cathedral’s Kayla Goblirsch putts on the first hole at the Class A State Girls’ Golf Meet Wednesday morning at Pebble Creek Golf Club in Becker. Goblirsch finished eighth overall for the tournament.

Netzke, Weiss, Nelson and Arneson were all seniors on the SEU team this season, and Mages said that they’ll be missed next spring.

“I was a bit emotional when they were putting out on their last hole,” Mages said. “Toby and Logan have been two pillars on the team for a long time now. They were on that state tournament team that won in 2018. And then AJ and Jack just came out as seniors for their first season of golf, and they really made the whole team a lot more like a family, so definitely going to miss them.”

SEU will still have Erickson, a sophomore, and Schultz, a junior, back next season to help put together another strong team. Mages also said golf in Sleepy Eye has taken off over the years and he expects to see a younger cast step up next season.

Also for the area boys, seniors Mavrick Winkelmann of Springfield and Logan Haala of New Ulm Cathedral tied for sixth overall with a 74 on Day 2 to finish with a 151.

Winkelmann said that he eagled the second hole of the day but struggled with the wind and on the greens. Overall, though, he finished strong enough to take home a medal.

“It means a lot,” Winkelmann said. “I’ve been working at this all season, and it’s been in the back of my mind all season. I really wanted to make it to state, that was my first goal, and obviously I did that. I came up here, and I really, really wanted to be in contention for that first place, that would’ve been sweet. But it really does mean a lot to finish my high school career off strong.”

Haala said that he did well with his putting, which saved him on Day 2 after a rough first three holes that saw him 2 over. He also chipped well and holed a bunker shot.

Despite Haala’s locked-in performance on Day 2, he said he wasn’t as confident as he wanted to be coming into the state tourney.

“Honestly, I didn’t have a lot of confidence coming into the tournament because the New Ulm Invite didn’t go well,” Haala said. “But I played way better than I expected, and it means so much. I’m very happy with sixth place, I didn’t think I’d get that but ended up doing it. It was kind of a care-free thing and it worked.”

Also for the area boys, Wabasso’s Will Carlson finished 55th overall after shooting a 93 on Day 2 for a 176 total.

On the girls’ side of the meet, New Ulm Cathedral’s Kayla Goblirsch did enough on Day 2 to finish eighth and win her first state medal in four appearances. She shot an 89 on Wednesday to finish with a two-day total of 176.

Goblirsch said that the putting was tough, but she battled through it and was glad to take home a medal.

“It was definitely a battle out there today,” Goblirsch said. “The putting was tough, but I just tried to never give up on a hole because you never know what can happen. There’s definitely room for improvement, but I was happy to come home with a state medal for the first time.”

Goblirsch will now have another year of golf to improve, get back to state and better her score from this year.

“My coaches have definitely helped me out this year, especially at state,” Goblirsch said. “They kept me focused, they kept me calm throughout the whole experience and made it a great time. For next year, I’m hoping to make it back to state and then place in the top five because each year I’ve improved a bit where I’ve placed, so I’m hoping to keep that going.”

Nadine Clobes of Minnesota Valley Lutheran also finished in the top 10 at state this year for the girls’ with a two-day score of 179. She shot an 88 on Wednesday, improving on her score of 91 from Tuesday and finishing ninth overall at state.

Starting on Hole 10, Clobes finished her back nine (Holes 1-9) strong.

“Things didn’t actually start going well until I made the turn on that second nine,” Clobes said of her Day 2 performance. “And then on that first hole, I birdied it, which I think helped boost my confidence after getting a 48 on the back. So that helped. And then I didn’t have any double bogeys, which also helped, and then I birdied my last hole, too, which I think pushed me to be into the top 10.”

Clobes said that finishing in the top 10 was a goal she had coming into the state tournament.

“It was actually my goal going into the state tournament — to end up in the top 10,” Clobes said. “I didn’t necessarily play how I wanted to either day, but in the end it all worked out.”

Abbie Riederer, Clobes’ teammate from MVL, finished with a 108 on Day 2, giving her a two-day total of 223 to have her tied for 69th at state.

Also from the area for the girls, Cedar Mountain’s Morgan Engholm shot a 103 on Day 2 to finish tied for 51st at state with a 209. Engholm improved three strokes from her Tuesday score.

SEU’s Liz Schwint finished tied for 62nd at state with a Day 2 score of 104. That gave her a 216 total.

The girls’ team title was won by Lac qui Parle Valley, who finished first with a 720.