DAVE FAVILA | Staff Writer
Lyford’s Jacob Serna and Raymondville’s James Alfaro won’t be at school at the end of this month.
Both will be in Austin at the end of April to begin their pursuit of state golf titles.
Serna captured the Region IV-3A title at Quail Creek Country Club in San Marcos on Tuesday to qualify for a trip to the Class 3A state tournament at Grey Rock Golf Club in Austin on April 27-28.
Meanwhile, Alfaro earned a trip to the UIL Class 4A tournament by finishing in third place at the Region IV-4A championship at Lozano Golf Course in Corpus Christi also on Tuesday.
Alfaro, a junior, shot back-to-back 73s to finish the tournament in a four-way tie for first place at 146 before settling for third after a playoff.
“He was one of the most consistent golfers out there the past two days,” said Raymondville head coach Steve Cantu of Alfaro. “This is his first trip to state, but he’s been in the hunt ever since his freshman year.
“Last year, he came close but rain forced the second round of regionals to be cancelled and he missed his shot, but this year he finally did it. He’s just thrilled to be representing the Valley and District 32-4A at state.”
The Class 4A state meet is set for April 25-26 at Onion Creek Golf Club in Austin.
Meanwhile at the Class 6A level, there will be no trip to state for the Harlingen Cardinals boys’ team. However, Weslaco High’s McLean Beckwith will be going.
Heading into Tuesday’s final round of the Region IV-6A tournament in San Antonio, the Cards were tied for fourth place and in striking distance of finishing as one of the top three teams.
Unfortunately, Tuesday’s scores were not as low as Monday’s, and at the end of the day the Red Birds had to settle for an eighth-place finish and no shot at a trip to state.
“There was nothing fun about today,” said Cardinals head coach Chris Milligan. “We had an opportunity and just weren’t able to capitalize. It’s disappointing and painful.
“Ultimately, I was stoked with how we played Monday. For four of our five guys, it was their first regionals. We are a young team and have everyone coming back next year. We’ll be better for the experience; it’s just tough to swallow at the moment. It was a really positive season. Once we get over this, next season wont’ be able to get here fast enough.”
Dylan Martinez led the Cards with a 78 to finish the tournament with a 157. He was followed by Cole Charvat, who shot a 75 on Monday but an 84 on Tuesday to finish with a total of 159.
Nicholas Galvan also had problems on Tuesday. After shooting a 75 on Day 1, Galvan settled for an 89 to finish with a two-day score of 164.
The day also proved disappointing for Brownsville Hanna, which finished the tournament in seventh place despite entering round two tied for fourth along with Harlingen.
To make matters worse, Hanna sophomore sensation Santiago Garcia, who was in first place after shooting a first-round 69, struggled on Tuesday and narrowly missed out on a trip to the state tournament.
Garcia shot a 78 on Tuesday to finish the tourney tied for sixth with Weslaco High’s Beckwith, who shot a masterful 68 and then beat Garcia in a one-hole playoff to claim the third and final individual spot at state.
Beckwith will be joined by regional champion Christopher Kaney of San Antonio Warren and Cole Donielson of SA Churchill, who was the second individual state qualifier not on a top-three team.
The three teams from Region IV-6A headed to state are SA Johnson, SA Brandeis and New Braunfels.
There was actually a three-way tie for first place, but Johnson ended up as the regional champion after winning in a playoff and Brandeis came in second after a playoff win over New Braunfels.
The UIL Class 6A state tournament is set for April 25-26 at Legacy Hills Golf Course in Georgetown.