LAC LA BICHE — Poor weather conditions didn’t make for good golf at the ACAC championships at the Lac La Biche Golf and Country Club during the weekend.
Saturday saw wind, rain and cold and while the sun did come out later on Sunday, the wind still played havoc with the scores.
Both the RDC men and women still battled and finished in the medals.
“I am most proud of the teams the way they continued to fight, and didn’t give up either day,” said RDC head coach Scott Bergdahl, who was named the CAC coach of the year. “The course played tough and the weather didn’t help.
“Our players had good reasons to give up as their individual scores were higher than normal, but they didn’t.”
Shaye Leidenius was one such individual as she opened with an 89, well above her normal score, then fought back with an 83, the best score of the day Sunday, to grab third place at 172. Her strong performance earned her a berth in the national finals in Charlottetown, P.E.I.
Hayley Phillips struggled against the elements and came in at 107-111—218 and in 14th place.
The RDC team placed third with a 390 total, back of Medicine Hat (335) and Grant MacEwan (370).
Becky Martin of Medicine Hat, who was shooting close to par while winning the North and South Regional titles, won the individual crown but struggled with an 80-87—167. She finished one stroke ahead of teammate Danielle Blackmer (84-84).
On the men’s side, RDC came in third at 662, one stroke back of Augustana. Grant MacEwan, who took the top three individual placings, ran away with the team title with a 608 total.
Barrett Belland took top spot with a 71-79—150 with Josh Gorieu at 75-77—152 and Brett Hawken at 81-74—155.
RDC’s Ryan Skoreyko had two solid rounds, shooting a 79-80 and tied for sixth at 159. Cole Morrison, who was the top RDC competitor in the two regional tournaments, opened with an 84 then shot a 78 on Sunday for a 162 total and ninth place.
Cody Clipperton came in 18th at 83-89—172 while Mitchell McKinnon (94-82) and Colton Craner (89-87) tied for 21st at 176 with Logan Crawford tied for 29th at 91-94—185.
The RDC men’s team will compete at the nationals, while a decision will be announced early this week on the women’s status.
Meanwhile, Bergdahl won the coach of the year award for the third time
“I’m humbled to receive this award and, for me, the important part of this honour is that it was voted on by my peers,” he said.
“This award may be presented to me, but it really for all the coaching staff, as we’re all focused on creating an experience for the student-athletes that will help them develop now, and also have a positive impact on their lives.”
Bergdahl spent much of his time developing the mental side of the game, which he felt was important with a number of new players.
“We have several players who have achieves tremendous personal growth, from smashing their own personal bests to working extremely hard to be competitive with in the ACAC. This personal growth inspires our whole team.”