McConnell, Platke medal at Mission Mtn.

Kiley McConnell and Reed Platke both captured medalist honors at last week's tournament at Mission Mountain Golf Club on Friday. McConnell posted a career-best 77 to lead the field representing more than 12 schools from Class A schools across the western Montana. Platke's two-under-par 70 won the boys side of the tournament by three shots over Brad Palin of Hamilton.

The Whitefish girls easily captured another first place by beating second-place Anaconda by nearly 30 shots in the one-day event. Senior Danielle McCully posted a season-best 88 to capture second place individually behind teammate Kiley McConnell. Talented freshman Erin Tarbush finished fifth with a strong showing of 95, which included a 45 on the opening nine holes.

Klaire Taylor finished fourth on the Whitefish girls team. Simone Craft, another freshman player, shot a respectable 124 in her first varsity tournament of the year.

"The team total of 364 is pretty good for early season, but we need to get below 350 each day to be competitive at state later in the year," Whitefish coach Terry Nelson said. "I was really pleased to see Kiley post another score in the 70s and for Danielle to be back in the 80s this week. The two freshman girls are both very athletic and will be great golfers with added experience and improved shot games."

Platke easily won the Flathead Valley Junior Championship at Eagle Bend last Thursday with a five-under 67. The boys team finished just seven strokes behind the strong Hamilton Broncos team. Many consider Hamilton to be the best Class A team in the state for 2010, but the Whitefish boys are closing the gap each week.

Junior Camp Kenyon had a great tournament at Ronan with a solid 77 over the Mission Mountain Course, which he had not previously played. Kenyon is a transfer student from Hellgate High School in Missoula and was a soccer player before joining the Bulldog team.

"We're very happy to have Camp on the team. He has added greatly to our depth," Nelson said. "He's really worked hard this summer to develop his game, and it's showing in our early season tournaments."

Freshman Arthur Doorn posted a very impressive 78 in his second varsity tournament. Earlier in the week, Doorn shot a 76 at Old Works in the Anaconda Invitational. Sophomore Iaian Cameron had a very respectable 85 to contribute to the team's overall success. Except for a couple of holes, a 10 on a par five and a 7 on a par four, Cameron would have easily shot in the 70s as well.

"He's starting to post lower scores and is getting a better handle on his game," Nelson said.

Senior Kyler Blades made the adjustment from a successful baseball season to golf look easy this year, Nelson added.

"Kyler is an outstanding athlete and has a really natural and swing with great tempo," Nelson said. "He, too, makes us stronger and more competitive as we move into the season."

Dylan Parr qualified this week for the Great Falls invitational tournament, and with his past varsity experience over the last three years, the team should be able to post an even lower team score. Parr was on the state championship team the past two years.

"Dylan is very capable of posting consistent scores in the mid-70s for our team," Nelson said.

Carl Talsma, another of the three seniors on the team with lots of experience, is working his way back up the team standings and should be ready to show his skills at the next varsity tournament.

"Carl is another of the great baseball players who also plays golf, and he also has an excellent swing and is a hard worker on the team," Nelson said. "Carl played in several varsity tournaments with last year's state championship team. I know he'll be in the mix as we move forward through the season."