Logan golf qualifies for first state tournament in 14 years

The Logan Wildcats captured the Class AA Region IV golf championship and the schools first berth in the state tournament since 2011 Monday at the Mingo Bottom Golf Club. Pictured (from left) are Crew Blankenship, Alton Ellis, Adex Martin and Kevin Farmer (Photo courtesy of Angie Farmer). 

Bill Lusk | WVOW Sports

ELIZABETH Logan High School ended a 14-year state tournament drought Monday on the links of the Mingo Bottom Golf Course.

Alton Ellis shot an 8-over-par 80 Monday to claim individual medalist honors as the Wildcats shot a team-best 44-over-par to win the Class AA Region IV championship and advance to state golf tournament for the first time since 2011.

Logan’s three top golfers shot an 18-hole round of 260 and beat runner-up Sissonville by 13 strokes to qualify for next week’s state tournament, October 14-15 at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Course at the Speidel Golf Club at Oglebay Resort in Wheeling.

Logan and Sissonville are two of eight teams in the Class AA field and will be joined by three other regional champions and three other regional runners-up.

Wheeling Central claimed the Region I championship with a five-shot win over Doddridge County; Petersburg was 27-shots better than Frankfort to win the Region II championship and Midland Trail finished six shots ahead of Wyoming East to take home the Region III championship.

Ellis’ performance on the back nine, a 1-under-par 35, included two birdies, an eagle on the par-five 11^th hole and three pars, was enough to finish four shots ahead of Buffalo’s Evan Panaro, who shot a 12-over-par 84 to finish second.

Sissonville’s Layne Coffman finished third, five shots behind Ellis. Roane County’s Wattson Nichols was fourth with a 15-over-par 87, and Ellis’ teammate Crew Blankenship was fifth with a 17-over-par 89.

Panaro and Nichols posted the two lowest rounds, of any of the remaining individuals not on the regional championship winning team or the regional runner-up to qualify for the Class AA state tournament field, and will compete for an individual state championship at the Jones Course.

The Wildcats also got a 19-over-par 91 from Kevin Farmer, good enough for a sixth-place tie and a 24-over-par 96 from Adex Martin, who finished tied for 11^th with Wayne’s Riley Brown.

Roane County’s Carder Kinder and Sissonville’s Landon Chapman joined Farmer in the three-way tie for sixth while Scott teammates Lounden White, 21-over-par 93, and Blake Davis, 22-over-par 94, finished ninth and 10^th respectively.

In the team competition, Roane County fell four shots short of a state tournament berth finishing third with a team round of 277. Scott (288) was fourth, Buffalo (305) fifth and Wayne (326) sixth.

Logan finished eighth in the 2011 Class AAA state golf tournament played at the Jones Course.

This is the first year that golf has expanded to four classifications meaning that a new Class AA champion will be crowned this season. Last season’s Class AA champion, Shady Spring, is competing in Class AAA, and will be considered one of the favorites to bring home the title for a second consecutive season.

PHOTO | Angie Farmer