Boys golf competes at state

The young Outlaws squad performed well at the Class 4A State Championships on Monday and Tuesday, May 16 and 17, which were held at the Eagle Ridge Golf Course.

Sisters finished 11th out of 14 teams with a two-day total of 723. The Outlaws posted a team score of 365 in the first round on Monday and lowered their score by seven strokes in round two for a total of 357.

LaGrande took first place at 643 and Klamath Union was runner-up at 645. Crook County took third at 655.

All five Sisters golfers played well in their first state appearance. Nathan Pajutee sunk two birdies on day one and finished the round with an 82. Nathan birdied hole No. 4, a 350-yard par four. Pajutee hit a good drive up the middle and was on the green with his next shot. The sophomore hit the 30-foot putt for birdie.

Pajutee also birdied the par 4, 360-yard No. 5 hole. His second shot came to within two feet of the cup and was tapped in for birdie. Nathan shot an 86 in round two to finish the tourney at 168.

Pajutee said, "State was a very fun experience. It was a bit challenging because I played against older, more experienced golfers, but overall it was cool. I hope I make it back next year."

Zach Cummings (junior) posted a 90-85 for a two-day total of 175. Cummings highlighted his first round with a birdie on hole No. 6 (par 3). Zach came to within three feet of the pin on his first shot and made the birdie putt.

Cummings told The Nugget what he thought of his first state appearance.

"It felt like a varsity tournament, but with twice as many teams. But, the stakes were higher and each shot affected your final score. I think we all handled the pressure well and played to our potential."

Jaxon Stark shot a 98-90 for a 188, Tyler Berg a 95-97 for 192 and Nolan Ferwalt posted scores of 105-110 for 215.

Coach Jeff Barton was pleased with his young players.

"We did great and we overachieved," said Barton. "At the beginning of the season our goal was to get to state, and we did that as league champions. Last year we graduated four seniors, so this years' team was very young and inexperienced. They'd all been JV players except for Zach (Cummings). We went in with an attitude that we had nothing to lose. We were focused and didn't have many nerves. We had four seniors last year and we didn't even sniff at a state berth. These kids really stepped up and excelled their own expectations."