June 13, 2009

CATHEDRAL, ZIEDONIS RETURN TO DEFEND BOYS GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS

A total of 130 golfers representing 45 schools make up the field for the 73rd Annual IHSAA Boys Golf State Finals which begins Tuesday, June 16, at The Legends of Indiana Golf Course in Franklin. Second round play concludes the following day.

Twenty-one teams advanced five golfers each and 25 individuals have moved on without their squads. Participants will tee off the Middle 9 course and the Road 9 course beginning at 8 am ET / 7 am CT on Tuesday. Those teams and individuals that make the cut will return for a second day on Wednesday with the first group again starting at 8 am ET. The first round tee times and pairings are available here.

Thirteen of last year’s top 25 individuals return in 2009 including defending state champion Corey Ziedonis of Indianapolis Cathedral. Ziedonis, who helped Cathedral to the 2008 team title, birdied the 513-yard, par 5, 11^th hole in a sudden death playoff with Delta senior Chase Wright. The pair finished tied at 137 at the end of 36 holes. Only three individuals have ever won back-to-back state titles (Joe Campbell, Anderson, 1952, 1953; Ron Frantz, Indianapolis Broad Ripple, 1960, 1961; Jeremy Wilkinson, South Bend Clay, 1994, 1995). Ziedonis took honors with a 67 in the regional on Thursday at Hickory Stick.

Nick Grubnich of Crown Point, who finished tied for third in last year’s state finals at 139, placed fourth with a 76 at Beechwood on Saturday. Avon’s Patrick Rogers, who enjoyed a fifth place finish a year ago at 140, finished second with a 69 at Hickory Stick.

Mishawaka Marian senior Adam Sumrall, the 2007 state runner-up, took third place with a 74 at Beechwood over the weekend. Sumrall tied for 12th last year at The Legends.

Cathedral is one of 12 teams returning to this year’s finals making their fifth consecutive appearance. Last year’s runner-up Avon has advanced as well making its fourth consecutive trip to state. The Orioles placed third in the regional at Hickory Stick.

Evansville North, Hamilton Southeastern, Lafayette Jefferson and Mishawaka Marian each will make their third straight appearance as a team this week. Prairie Heights qualified as a team for the first time in school history following a second place finish at Orchard Ridge and Twin Lakes broke a 19-year drought since its last visit.

Fans and media are invited to view the progress of the state finals by visiting www.golfstat.com. The IHSAA will post the hole-by-hole scores for every player throughout the two days.

State Finals

The Legends of Indiana Golf Course, 2555 N. Hurricane Road, Franklin, IN, 46131.

About The Course | Driving Directions | Course Statistics | Course Photographs

Dates: Tuesday, June 16 (Round One); Wednesday, June 17 (Round Two).

Time: 8 am ET / 7 am CT both days.

Admission: $8.00 per session; $12.00 both sessions.

Advancement from Round One to Round Two: Top nine teams; Any team within 12 strokes of the lead after Round One; Top nine individuals, excluding those individuals who advance with a team plus; Any individual within four strokes of the lead after Round One; Teams tied for ninth place and medalists tied for ninth.

Live Scoring: www.golfstat.com

Media Information

Media Hosts: Sports Information Director Jason Wille and staff assistant Mike Wilson will be on hand to assist in your coverage.

Media Credentials: News media members should apply for credentials e-mailing or faxing your request on company letterhead (with name of individual applying) no later than 4 pm ET on Monday, June 15, to IHSAA Sports Information Director Jason Wille (jwille@ihsaa.org or 317-575-4244). E-mail requests MUST originate from a recognized business account; e-mails from personal accounts (ie: yahoo.com, aol.com, etc.) will not be accepted. Approved requests will be left for pickup at the team check-in table located between the clubhouse and the cart barn. A limited amount of riding carts will be available to members of the media on a first-come, first-served basis. Your credential is necessary for cart rental. Please check in at the clubhouse for details. No carts will be issued to the general public.

Services: Working space will be available in the pavilion building with wireless access and a pool phone will be available for filing purposes in the cart barn. Copies of the official program including scorecards also will be available along with results from both days of the event. Tee-times and pairings for Saturday’s second round will be posted to the IHSAA website as soon as possible on Friday afternoon/evening. Once again, the IHSAA will post the scorecard of each individual participating in the state finals through Golfstat.com.

Notables

Teams Qualified (21)

Avon, Bedford North Lawrence, Brebeuf Jesuit, Carmel, Chesterton, Evansville North, Floyd Central, Hamilton Southeastern, Homestead, Indianapolis Cathedral, Lafayette Jefferson, LaPorte, Mishawaka Marian, Northview, Prairie Heights, Providence, Terre Haute South, Twin Lakes, Warsaw, West Lafayette, Yorktown.

Teams Returning from 2008 State Finals (12 of 21)

Avon, Chesterton, Evansville North, Hamilton Southeastern, Indianapolis Cathedral, Lafayette Jefferson, LaPorte, Mishawaka Marian, Providence, Terre Haute South, West Lafayette, Yorktown.

Individuals Qualified without a Team (25)

Dilan Arnold (12) Heritage Hills.

Joe Bella (10) Penn.

Casey Deal (12) Bloomington North.

Kyle Dickerson (12) Ben Davis.

Tyler Evans (10) Center Grove.

Andrew Fogg (10) Roncalli.

John Frisby (12) Lebanon.

Jake Groninger (10) Pendleton Heights.

Nick Grubnich (10) Crown Point.

Drew Imel (12) Norwell.

Stefan Katzenmeier (11) Fort Wayne Canterbury.

Tyler Keith (11) Oak Hill.

Taran Kennedy (10) Triton.

Robbi Koors (12) Greensburg.

Tyler Merkel (11) Evansville Central.

Zach Muench (9) Center Grove.

Jacob Napier (12) East Central.

Taylor Noel (12) Boone Grove.

Nicholas Pechin (12) Lakeland.

Jeremy Rolf (11) Indianapolis Lutheran.

Adam Schenk (11) South Knox.

Alex Stinson (12) Liberty Christian.

Austin Stonebraker (11) Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger.

Ryan Terry (11) Signature.

Brodie Williams (12) Lapel.

Individuals Returning from 2008 Top 25 (13)

T1. Corey Ziedonis, Indianapolis Cathedral, 137.

T3. Nick Grubnich, Crown Point, 139.

T5. Patrick Rogers, Avon, 140.

9. Al Jennings, Homestead, 141.

T10. Henry Plager, Indianapolis Cathedral, 142.

T12. Brad Gehl, Indianapolis Cathedral, 143.

T12. Adam Sumrall, Mishawaka Marian, 143.

T16. Ryan Grassel, Chesterton, 145.

T16. Trey Pfund, Providence, 145.

T16. Jacob Wagner, Lafayette Jefferson, 145.

T20. Jacob Yocum, Lafayette Jefferson, 146.

T22. Parker Sheppard, Hamilton Southeastern, 147.

T25. Wesley Bowman, Hamilton Southeastern, 148.

Most Consecutive State Finals Appearances

21: Indianapolis Shortridge (1932-1957; State Tournament was discontinued from 1942-46 due to WWII).

Active Streaks of Consecutive State Finals Appearances (3 or more years)

5: Indianapolis Cathedral.

4: Avon.

3: Evansville North, Hamilton Southeastern, Lafayette Jefferson, Mishawaka Marian.

First-Time Team State Finals Appearances

Prairie Heights.

State Finals Appearance Droughts Broken (10 years or more)

19: Twin Lakes (1990).

Former State Champions in the Field

Corey Ziedonis, 12, Indianapolis Cathedral (2008).

Former State Runners-Up in the Field

Adam Sumrall, 12, Mishawaka Marian (2007).

IHSAA 08-09/39