UNIVERSITY PLACE — The Port Angeles boys golf team fell just short of its goal of finishing in the top three at state.
The Roughriders, though, did finish a best-ever fourth in coach Mark Mitrovich’s 27 years at Port Angeles.
Chimacum’s boys, meanwhile, tied for sixth place in the 1A championships.
Senior Joe Barnes of Port Angeles, a two-time Olympic League MVP, finished in a tie for 15th place to pace the Riders while Garrett Payton tied for 25th and sophomore Alex Atwell tied for 29th.
Austin Underwood and Micah Needham missed the first-day cut for Wednesday’s final round at Chambers Bay.
Dana Fox of Port Angeles, meanwhile, had the top finish for a 2A golfer as she tied for 14th place in the girls state meet at The Classic Golf Club in Spanaway.
The Roughrider boys finished with a final team score of 52.5, just nudging out Bellingham (52) for fourth place by half a point. Last year the Riders missed fourth place by half a point.
Hockinson, which had four players finish in the top 18, easily won the team title with 119 points, followed by W.F. West with 88 and Clarkston with 68.5.
Nine teams were eligible for team points with at least two golfers from each school advancing to the finals on the second day.
Ephrata’s Aaron Whalen won the individual title by five strokes, scoring 71 the first day and 69 the second day for the 36 holes.
Brady Calkins of W.F. West, who had a tourney-leading 70 the first day, fell out of contention for the title with a 75 the second.
Barnes, who captured sixth place at state last year, finished with a two-day score of 163, shooting 78 the first day and 85 the second. He was tied for eighth place at the end of the first day Tuesday.
Payton, meanwhile, shot 169, shooting 84 on Tuesday and 85 on Wednesday.
Atwell wasn’t far behind with a 171, scoring 84 the first day and 87 the second.
Barnes was in eighth place the first day while Payton and Atwell were tied for 31st.
Missing the cut for the final round were Underwood, who shot 90 the first day, and Needham, who shot 95.
The top 40 of the field of 80 golfers advanced after the first day with scores of 86 or better.
Chambers Bay is a Scottish-style links course.
Fox, meanwhile, played on the more traditional course, The Classic, where she ended up tied for 14th place with a final two-day score of 190, shooting 95 on each day.
“She played really well, it was a tough course,” Port Angeles girls golf coach Beth Krause said about Fox.
“We’re pleased she got in the top 15. It was not the best conditions [Wednesday], it poured on us all day.
“But she chipped really well both days.”
Steilacoom’s Cherokee Kim dominated the field for the 2A girls title with a score of 156, winning by six strokes.
She shot 77 the first day and 79 the second.
Bellingham won the team title with 144.5 points with four players finishing in the top nine.
Bellingham’s top player, Brooke Branigan, claimed third place with 166.
Fife was runner-up with 66.5 while Lake Washington took third with 58.5 and Capital was fourth with 57.5.
In girls competition, Sequim’s Maddy Fisher and Elisa Sallee did not make the cut for Wednesday’s final round.
Fisher scored 105 the first day, just missing the cut by one stroke.
Sallee scored 107 for 18 holes the first day.
Chimacum sixth
SPANAWAY — The Chimacum boys finished in a tie for sixth place at the 1A state golf meet at Lake Spanaway Golf Course on Wednesday.
The Cowboys earned 39 points to tie with Mount Baker for sixth place while Ilwaco, with two in the top four, three in the top 11 and four in the top 25, ran away with the team championship with 132.5 points.
Ilwaco’s Ross Kukula won the individual title by eight strokes. His two-day, 36-hole score was 139 as he shot 71 the first day and a sizzling 68 the second, the only one to shoot below 70.
Lynden Christian was second in team scoring with 98 while Blaine took third with 77 and Chewelah was fourth with 50.
Twelve teams scored points at the 1A meet.
Kevin Miller had the best finish for the Cowboys as he tied for eighth place with 155, shooting 75 the first day and 80 the second.
Miller was tied for fourth place at the end of the first day.
Chimacum’s Nathan Browning tied for 32nd place by shooting 169 both days, 83 in the first round and 86 during the second and final round.
Riley Downs of Chimacum missed the first-day cut by just one stroke as he shot 86 on Tuesday.
