By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD
Hanna golfer Santiago Garcia was at his best during Thursday’s final round of the District 32-6A Tournament at Weslaco’s Tierra Santa Golf Course.
Garcia, a senior and past 32-6A champion, shot an 11-under-par 61 over a par-72 course to capture the district crown again. He finished with a two-day score of 73-61 — 134. His 61 is believed to have tied the record for the best 18-hole score by a Texas high school golfer in UIL competition.
“I’m extremely blessed and honored to have won four district titles,” the standout Hanna golfer said. “And about my 61, all I can say is my hard work pays off, but my ultimate goal is a trip to state.”
Harlingen High’s Dylan Martinez was the runner-up boys medalist and shot 76-72 — 148. Taking third place was Weslaco High’s Quin Vos with a 78-72 — 150.
The Cardinals took first place in the boys team standings, coming in at 313-308 — 621. Hanna’s boys were the runner-up team at 334-305 — 639.
Regarding the district championship finish, Cardinal coach Chris Milligan said, “Not to sound cocky, but that was our expectation all along (to finish first). The stage was there and our golfers performed well.”
The top two teams at district plus the top two individuals not on one of the top two teams now advance to the Region IV-6A Tournament in San Antonio at Republic Golf Course. The boys play April 23-24 and the girls play April 25-26.
Qualifying for regionals individually for the boys were Weslaco High’s Vos and Harlingen South’s Brandon Garza (fifth place, 82-75 — 157).
After Garcia, the next best score for the Hanna boys was fourth-place Marco Gonzalez, who shot 83-72 — 155. Also for Hanna, Austin O’Brien shot 86-74 — 160.
Besides Martinez’s 148, the other top scores for the Cardinals were Mike Bullock (77-80 — 157), Nicholas Galvan (76-81 — 157) and Nate Newman (85-75 — 160).
The Los Fresnos girls repeated as district champions and Weslaco High was the runner-up.
The Lady Falcons shot 345-324 — 669 for first place and the Lady Panthers came in second with a score of 403-369 — 772.
The girls district medalist was Harlingen High’s Micaela Leandro, who shot 85-70 — 155, while Los Fresnos’ Natalie Barrera was the runner-up medalist by shooting 85-76 — 161. Third place went to Hanna’s Alexis Rodriguez, who shot 79-82 — 161. She tied Barrera for second and lost on a playoff hole.
Leandro and Alexis Rodriguez advance to regionals individually.
Besides Barrera’s 161, other top scores for Los Fresnos were Jossie Garcia (85-83 — 168), Kasandra Garcia (87-87 — 174) and Alexandra Montes (88-86 — 174).