The season is winding down for many spring sports, and area teams competed in the Metro West conference championships May 23, with multiple championships and All-Conference players.
GIRLS GOLF
Chaska came out on top to win its second consecutive conference championship. Other than winning in 2021, the Hawks had not won the conference except for 1994.
“Winning the conference is such a culmination of hard work and for us to come out on top was very exciting,” head coach Pam Schmillen said. “There were some tears of joy, too. For the seniors it was the last conference meet and for them to win it, we were all emotionally on top.”
The race for the conference crown was tight heading into the championship tournament, as the Hawks had a two-point advantage over Chanhassen. Chaska came out on top with a team score of 317 while Chanhassen finished second in the tournament and conference with a 331.
Chaska was led by seniors Sammy Youngquist and Libby Marsnik, junior Nikki Reineke and sophomore Avery Nelson. Youngquist finished second in the meet with a 74, Reineke finished tied for third with a 75, Nelson tied for sixth with a 79 and Marsnik scored an 89. The top four for Chaska also received All-Conference honors.
Senior Madi Hicks led the way for the Storm, as she tied Reineke for third with a 75. Senior Claire Witcraft and junior Lindsay Thompson tied for eighth, each scoring 85. The top six girls for Chanhassen – Hicks, Witcraft, Thompson, seniors Jamie Bimberg, Brooke Stellmaker, Lauren Murray and junior Juliana Berglund – all received All-Conference honors.
BOYS GOLF
Led by senior Danny Renner and freshman Lucas Arntsen, Chanhassen finished third in the championship tournament, which was enough for the Storm to win the conference title. Renner and Arntsen each finished with a 73, and freshman Cameron Stenzel finished with a 79. After winning the conference, head coach Tony Happ expressed how happy he was with the finish.
“It’s been a fun, quick year watching the guys compete with our depth and the quality of golfers we have. Overall it’s a great group of guys which makes it a fun year,” Happ said. “It was fun to see what they were capable of doing, and now that we’re at the point where we can see how the team can really do.”
Renner, Arntsen, senior Zach Bloedorn and freshman Andrew Ballou earned All-Conference honors. While winning the Metro West was one of their goals at the beginning of the season, the Storm are now looking to take their play to the next level at the section tournament.
“The mentality is to play well and see what your score is at the end,” head coach Tony Happ said. “Our ultimate goal is to get to state as a team, so we tell the team, ‘Don’t get too ahead of yourself, it’s golf, anything can happen really quick.’”
The Chaska boys’ golf team also had a strong showing, finishing third overall in the conference. Josh Esterley was named Player of the Year in the conference, while Zach Seltun and Sam Klovstad also earned All-Conference honors.
All four teams will now turn their attention to the section 2AAA tournament, with the first day beginning on May 31. Out of the 12 teams in the section, four teams along with individual qualifying golfers will advance to the second day of the tournament on June 1.
