Appomattox in 5th at Group A state golf tournament

MIDLOTHIAN — Appomattox, thanks to solid play over the final nine holes, sits in fifth place after the first round of the two-day Group A state golf tournament Monday at Independence Golf Club in Midlothian.

The Raiders’ total of 334 is 20 strokes back of Giles County’s total of 314. The Spartans shot a 314 and the four golfers who count towards the score shot 79s or better.

“I was kind of hoping we could be around 320 — that’s been our basic score for the last couple of weeks,” Appomattox coach Doug Marshall said. “The front nine kind of bit everybody up. They played real well on the backside and were able to hold it down, so that’s something to look forward to tomorrow. We’ve got to find a way to conquer the front side.”

After each Appomattox golfer shot over 40 on the front nine, four of the six Raiders shot 39 or better on the back nine to minimize the damage and stay within striking distance heading into the final round.

Patrick Mayberry shot a team-low 83 after posting a 38 on the back nine. Tyler Mullins also added an 83, while Jake Perkins and Tyler Carrico each shot an 84, Eric Moore carded an 86 and Patrick Franklin chipped in with an 87.

“All of us played really bad on the front nine and ended up holding it down in the upper 30s on the back to finish up the round in the 80s,” Mayberry said. “I think that tomorrow we’ve got a good chance of com-ing in third — at least third. I think our guys are capable of breaking 80 easy. Hopefully we can all get in the 70s tomorrow and finish third or better.”

Chatham, which first finished ahead of Appomattox in both the Dogwood and Region B tournaments, sits in third at 325. Galax, the defending Group A state champion, is in second at a score of 323.

“You’ll have to shoot a low number,” Marshall said. “You’ve got those three teams you’re going to have to look at and see what you’ve got. We’re 20 back of Giles, so we’re going to have to have a real good per-formance and hope they come back and help us a little bit.”

Altavista senior Leighton Bennett sits in good position for a strong finish in the individual portion of the tournament. Bennett shot an 83 and is 10 shots back of the duo of Radford’s Zeke Shaffer and James River’s Korey Watts, who both shot 73.

“Leighton’s a lot better than an 83 out here,” Altavista coach Tim Fenn said. “It’s only his second time seeing the course. I know he’s capable of a lot lower and take away a couple of his shot selections and he’s right in contention.”

Bennett got off to a good start, but the middle holes hindered his progression. The lone Colonels’ repre-sentative was at 5-over par through 13 holes, but played the final five holes at even-par to pick up some momentum heading into the second round.

“It got my confidence up and kept me going pretty good,” Bennett said of the final five holes. “I could play about five or six strokes better.”