DAYTON -- The streak is over for Carson High's golf team. No, the Senators didn't qualify for next week's NIAA/U.S. Bank 4A State Tournament. They just didn't end up in fourth and only one stroke behind the third-place team, like they had the previous three years.
Carson, which started Wednesday's final round at Dayton County Club in second place, stumbled to a team score of 434 and finished in fifth place at the Northern 4A Regional Tournament.
"We really didn't play well both days," said senior Steve McQuirk. "We could've done a little better. But could've, would've, should've. It's one of those things. We had a good year and making state would've topped it off. But it just didn't happen."
Galena, Reed and McQueen all qualified for state, which will be held next Tuesday and Wednesday at Red Hawk Golf Club in Sparks. The Grizzlies finished in first with a two-day total of 786. The Raiders came in at second after putting together back-to-back team totals of 415 each day for a total of 830. The Lancers grabbed the last spot at 834. Both McQueen and Reed started the final round in third place and one shot back of Carson, which shot 414 on Tuesday.
The top five individuals from non-qualifying teams also qualified for state. The Senators' Steve McQuirk was one of them. He followed up his first round score of 82 with an 80 on Wednesday to finish with 162, the cut-off mark.
"I would have liked to see the team make it. But me being the only senior on the team, I'm kind of glad I get to go to state," McQuirk said. "I played pretty decent. It fluctuated quite a bit out there. I'd make three pars in a row, then bogey, then birdie. It was just a real steady round. I'm pretty sure that if I shoot like I can, then the top 5, top 10 is realistic for me (at state)."
McQuirk will be joined at Red Hawk by Sparks' Craig Wenzel and Reno's Jared Becher, who both finished with 158s. South Tahoe's Dan D'Angelo and Fallon's Brody Hammon also qualified with 162s.
Galena's Matt Kinsinger took overall medalist honors. After a 2-under 70 on Tuesday, he came back to shoot 75 on Wednesday to finish with a 145. McQueen's Yves Vasquez came in second with a 157.
Kinsinger, who set a state record with a 6-under 66 in a tournament earlier this season at Arrowcreek Country Club, expected the Grizzlies to finish first at zone. He's hoping for another first place finish next week.
"We kind of came in expecting to finish in first," said Kinsinger, who shot a 79 two years ago at a tournament held at Red Hawk. "Definitely that's our goal (to win state). I'd also like to win but I'd like to see the team win also. If we shoot a 381 like we did yesterday, we'll be opening the door up for a lot of teams. But if we can shoot 375 or 370, like I know we can, I think we'll have a good shot."
Gusty winds and brisk air made for less than ideal conditions for all eight teams. Scores skyrocketed on Wednesday. As a team, Carson shot 20 strokes higher than it did on Tuesday. The Senators' Chad Gilmore, who was in the final group after firing a 4-over 76 on Tuesday, shot an 87. He needed to beat McQueen's Mark Stathes, who was also in the final group, by 12 strokes for Carson to tie the Lancers for the last spot in state. Stathes had an 84 for McQueen, which finished the regular season ranked sixth in the Northern Nevada Cup Standings.
"We've been pretty tight all year," McQuirk said. "We finished third in the regular season but Reno, McQueen, Reed and us have all gone back and forth. It just wasn't our day."
Douglas finished in last place with a 871. Eddie Shope had a two-day total of 163 (80-83) to just miss qualifying for state.
