The River Falls High School boys’ golf team had itsseason end on Tuesday, June 8. The Wildcats finished third in the Sectionals East Tournament over in Wausau, but were nine points short of finishing second and advancing onto the next round of the tournament.

“As a coach the feeling I had when the last putt didn't fall and I knew the season was over was a feeling I will never forget and push me to work hard to be the best coach I can be,” said Head Coach Tim LaVold on the concluding moment of the Wildcats’ golf season.

Although the season did not end as the Wildcats boys’ golf team would have anticipated, the year was still a great experience for the athletes and the coaches.

“We learned a lot about golf as a team game,” said LaVold when reflecting on the season. “Even though you are on the course playing your own ball and shooting your own score you are doing it within a team environment and trying to know your role on the team. Playing for each other takes a lot of mental toughness as well.”

LaVold also shared that golf at the high school level is not about how far you can hit the ball off the tee, but hitting the ball where you want to, like a contact hitter in baseball. That also helped bring in a team mentality for the Wildcats, to be mentally tough in their decision making.

The season still had great memories for everyone as LaVold shared, “The long van rides to and from events were where we really bonded as a group. We call the van ‘Freda’ and it was an important and memorable part of our season. On the golf course our team score at the Superior Invitational was incredible. Anytime you can shoot under 300 (we shot 297 that day) you've done something special.

“This was the first season that Coach Sneddeker and I learned a lot about HS golf in our first season together coaching for RFHS,” said LaVold. “We always stress being very good at chipping and putting and understanding strategy on the course. We will continue to encourage growth in these areas as well as working to get kids out to play golf at younger ages so they can excel at the high school level.”

Individual results from Tuesday’s Sectionals Trey Timm 76 Max Xiong 79 Matthew Marsollek 86 Dylan Rach 86 Ethan Campbell 102