By DAVID COOK
The road to winning the Division 3 boys’ golf state championship truly runs along US-127 between Lansing and Jackson.
From 2009 through 2012, Lumen Christi Catholic won four straight state titles. Lansing Catholic is now on pace to match that mark, as the Cougars have won the past three titles, including this year’s.
Lansing Catholic claimed its title with a two-day mark of 623 to best second-place Ludington by 12 shots. Lumen Christi placed third with 653.
The Cougars led the finals from start to finish, as they shot a 303 on Friday to open up an eight-stroke lead and then shot a 320 on Saturday to clinch the title.
“We started talking about the champion mindset at the beginning of the season, and they started adapting some of those mental techniques we started using,” said Lansing Catholic Central coach Kim Johnson. “They started to believe it when the season went on and it started to pay off.”
Owen Rush led the way for the Cougars, as he shot rounds of 74 and 77. A junior, Rush placed third overall as an individual.
Senior Patrick Gillespie totaled a 156, followed by fellow senior Niko Voutssaras with a 158. Adam Elias and Ethan O’Farrell both shot 160 in blustery weather conditions on the Forest Akers West course.
“We had some nerves at the beginning of the round, but the boys settled themselves down and tried to keep the boat steady,” said Johnson, who was in his first year of coaching the Cougars. “When they saw other scores coming in and realized that it may not be them, it may be the conditions on the course.”