Lafayette sophomore Jacob Smethurst saved his best golf round of the season for when he needed it most.
Smethurst shot a season-best one-over-par 73 to earn top individual honors at the 3A Colonial Rivers Conference 25 golf tournament at Royal New Kent on Monday.
Since the Rams did not finish in the top two of the team standings — they placed fourth behind conference champion New Kent (327), runner-up Southampton (334) and third-place Park View (342) — Lafayette did not qualify for the regional tournament as a team. Smethurst will compete at the next level by shooting himself into the top six of the individual leaderboard.
Smethurst’s teammate, Tawni Hatcher, also shot her way into next week’s 3A East Region tournament. The junior carded a four-over 76 to place third and prolong her season at least one more week.
The only other local player who qualified for regionals was York’s Spencer Bacon, who finished 11 overall with an 87.
The team scores from Monday’s match are listed below, followed by the top 16 individual finishers. The names in bold secured regional tournament berths.
Team Scores
New Kent 327
Southampton 334
Park View 342
Lafayette 343
York 360
Poquoson 371
Colonial Heights 377
Warhill 389
Individual Leaderboard (Top 16)
Jacob Smethurst, Lafayette, 73
Brandon Munford, Southampton, 75
Tawni Hatcher, Lafayette, 76
Jacob Berryman, Park View, 78
Parker Wallace, New Kent, 78
Austin Pierce, New Kent, 80
Hunter Peck, Southampton, 80
Jackson Gray, New Kent, 84
Brendan Simms, Southampton, 85
Brandon Lewis, Park View, 87
Spencer Bacon, York, 87
Cole Baldwin, New Kent, 88
Christian Mosier, Park View, 88
Hunter Collins, York, 89
Sherwood Baskerville, Park View, 89
Josh Broaddus, Warhill, 90
