2B » Monday, December 17, 2012 »
S C R I P P S T R E A S U R E C O A S T N E W S PA P E R S » T C
ALL-AREA BOYS GOLF TEAM
BOYS GOLFER OF THE YEAR PAYTON TAYLOR
All-Area First Team
Justin Aursland
Coach of the Year
ARLEN BENTO JR.
Jeremy Feil
Evan Grills
Jake Holt
Jake Leffew
Liam Snyder
Pine School, seventh year This season: Pine School went 8-4 in the regular season, won the District 19-1A tournament and finished fourth in the Region 7-1A tournament. Pine School did not have any seniors on the team. Quotable: “I’m proud of my kids. I think as a group we played well, we had some good matches. We’re young and the kids found ways to get better. As a group, the thing we’re working toward is the ability to get even better and be able to pull the best out of each other.”
First Team continued Kodi Stephen
HIROYUKI UKIGAYA
Cole Thompson
Morningside sophomore Notable: Averaged 38 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 71 in the District 19-1A tournament (runner-up) and 92 in the Region 7-1A tournament
DOMINICK VENNARRI Hiroyuki Ukigaya
Martin County senior Notable: Averaged 36.2 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 67 in the District 18-2A tournament (medalist) and 81 in the Region 6-2A tournament
Dominick Vennari
JUSTIN AURSLAND
Jensen Beach senior Notable: Averaged 38.4 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 73 in the District 18-2A tournament and 80 in the Region 6-2A tournament
HONORABLE MENTION MARK BRICKMAN St. Edward’s sophomore
JEREMY FEIL
NICK CERULLI Port St. Lucie junior
Lincoln Park senior Notable: Averaged 37 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 71 in the District 19-1A tournament (runner-up) and 78 in the Region 7-1A tournament
JAKE CORVINO St. Edward’s sophomore DEBORAH SILVER/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS
Payton Taylor is the Scripps Treasure Coast Newspaper’s All-Area Boys Golfer of the Year.
EVAN GRILLS
In the driver’s seat
South Fork senior Notable: Averaged 38 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 77 in the District 18-2A tournament and 76 in the Region 6-2A tournament
JAKE HOLT
Pine School freshman Notable: Averaged 37.7 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 70 in the District 19-1A tournament (medalist) and 75 in the Region 7-1A tournament
JAKE LEFFEW
Vero Beach sophomore Notable: Averaged 36.7 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 77 in the District 18-2A tournament, 71 in the Region 6-2A tournament (runner-up) and 156 in the FHSAA Finals
LIAM SNYDER
Jensen Beach senior Notable: Averaged 38.3 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 71 in the District 18-2A tournament and 77 in the Region 6-2A tournament
KODI STEPHEN
Okeechobee senior Notable: Averaged 36.8 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 73 in the District 18-2A tournament and 77 in the Region 6-2A tournament
COLE THOMPSON
Sebastian River senior Notable: Averaged 37.0 strokes per nine holes during the regular season; shot 70 in the District 18-2A tournament and 78 in the Region 6-2A tournament
NICK GAGLIARDI Pine School sophomore GREYSON GARDNER Pine School junior FREDERIK GUSTAFSSON Vero Beach senior
Junior Payton Taylor works hard in practice and doesn’t take a back seat to anyone on the course By Jon Santucci Special to Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers
VERO BEACH — Payton Taylor never wanted to sit in the back of the minivan on the way to a golf match. The Vero Beach junior had just one option to avoid being squished in the back; perform well enough in practice to make sure he got one of the seats up front. Whoever scored best in team qualifiers got their choice of seat. “That definitely made me want to play as hard as I possibly could,” Taylor said. “Our matches, when we played each other in practice, were harder than most of the matches we would play against other teams. Every time we had a qualifier, it wasn’t a normal practice. We have to play well and that was the best thing of it. I think a lot of it helped me for sure. The pressure was there, so in the matches it felt like we had done it before — because you did it constantly.” It’s no surprise Vero Beach coach Mark Cammarene said Taylor almost always sat up front. He averaged a sub-par 35.8 strokes per nine holes during the regular season and was the most consistent golfer in the area all season. Taylor, who finished tied for 20th in the Class 2A state tournament, is the Scripps Treasure Coast All-Area Boys Golfer of the Year. “Payton was so consistent,” Cam-
Golfer of the Year
PAYTON TAYLOR
Vero Beach junior Notable: Averaged 35.8 strokes per nine holes during the regular season, shot 69 in the District 18-2A tournament (runner-up), shot 72 in the Region 6-2A tournament and shot 154 in the FHSAA Finals (tied for 20th in Class 2A). Coach Mark Cammarene: “I would say the strength of Payton has always been consistency and that’s what he demonstrated this whole season. It’s always great to have a player come with a really great round, but when Payton was off his game a little bit, he was still 1-over par or 2-over par. His not-sogood is still really, really good.”
marene said. “It allowed me to do some different things with our lineup. Even if someone had a poor round, I knew I could always count on Payton.” Taylor’s strength was his ability to keep the ball in play and avoid big numbers. A few years ago, Taylor was the smallest player on Vero Beach’s roster and struggled to hit the ball long off the tee. To compensate, Taylor focused on developing a strong wedge game, but now that Taylor’s matured physically, he’s added strength while
BRIAN CULLEN Jensen Beach junior
BRENT GRAHAM Jensen Beach senior TIM GRAHAM Jensen Beach freshman
maintaining his wedge game. The result is a golfer who rarely shot above par and when he did post a low number, it wasn’t an uneven round filled with birdies and bogeys. “I just hit it in play a lot in the fairways and on the green,” Taylor said. “I only made one or two putts and I didn’t have a lot of bogeys. I wasn’t making any big numbers or hitting off-line. I was pretty consistent. I’m getting older, so now I know what to expect, so the pressure and nerves aren’t there. I just go out and play golf.” Take the District 18-2A tournament, for example. Taylor was the runner-up after firing a 3-under par 69. He bogeyed the first hole, then didn’t have another for the rest of the round. His round included four birdies, including his final two holes — an impressive feat considering assistant coach Mike Miller told Taylor he would need to birdie both holes for the Fighting Indians to win the tournament. “I think it’s a tribute to where he focuses in his practice,” Cammarene said. “He is definitely the best wedge player and he’s always a solid putter. Even when he’s a tad off in his putting, he still makes a number. Payton plays to post a number; he doesn’t get caught up in his golf swing. He is so consistent, and that’s what makes him so good.”
ALEX GRILLS South Fork sophomore MORGAN HOBBS Pine School sophomore JAKE KOONTZ Vero Beach sophomore MILES MISSIMER South Fork senior AVNIT PATEL Lincoln Park junior ALEX SPENCER Port St. Lucie senior BRADLEY WONKA Vero Beach junior
The Team
The 2012 All-Area Boys Golf Team was compiled by correspondent Jon Santucci.
All-Area Schedule SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
DEC. 23
DEC. 24
DEC. 25
Girls Golf
Boys Golf
Girls Bowling
Boys Bowling
Girls Swimming
Boys Swimming
Girls Cross Country
Boys Cross Country
Volleyball
Football