By Cort Reynolds

The Bluffton High School golf team finished eighth in the annual nine-team Northwest Conference championship tournament Thursday,  September 21, at the Delphos Country Club.

Delphos Jefferson won the tournament crown with 348 strokes. 

Allen East tied Leipsic for second at 353, but AE won the overall NWC title due to their combined regular season (12-4) and championship meet showing.

Crestview finished fourth at 356, followed by a bunched-up field. Spencerville came in fifth at 361 strokes, followed by Columbus Grove (365), Lincolnview (367) and Bluffton (388).

Ada totaled 419 strokes to finish ninth.

Crestview’s Matthew Dealy shot an 18-hole round of 74 to nose out defending champion Brevin Brandt of Leipsic by two strokes. Dealey earned NWC Player of the Year honors.

Pirate Evan Speicher earned second team All-NWC honors with his solid effort at the league meet. He shot 46-46=92 to finish 13th out of 53 golfers.

Teammate Preston Laytart also carded a 44-48=92 to tie Speicher for team-best finish.

Nick Lovett shot 55-46=101. Nate Rayle registered a 51-52=103 as the fourth Pirate scorer.

Ethan Fifer (53-52=105) and Grady Coonfare (53-54=107) rounded out the Bluffton participants.

AE’s Levi Clum tied for third at 77 with Jefferson’s Isaac Gallmeier to earn third medalist notice. Mustang Donovan Kennedy tied for sixth by carding an 84.

AE and Leipsic tied for the NWC regular season title at 12-4. Lincolnview and Delphos Jefferson knotted for third at 10-6, followed by Columbus Grove and Crestview in a fifth-place tie at 9-7.

Bluffton came in seventh at 6-10 in league play. Spencerville finished eighth at 4-12, followed in last by Ada (0-16).

NWC INDIVIDUAL TOURNEY TOP 10: 

1. Matthew Dealy (Crestview) 74 

2. Brevin Brandt (Leipsic) 76 

T3. Isaac Gallmeier (Jefferson) 77 

T3. Levi Clum (Allen East) 77 

5. Michael Woods (Spencerville) 81 

T6. Donovan Kennedy (Allen East) 84 

T6. Cooper Chapman (Spencerville) 84 

8. Gage Sautter (Col. Grove) 85 

9. Luke Bollenbacher (Lincolnview) 86 

10. Troy Pseekos (Jefferson) 88

Bluffton plays in the Div. II sectional tournament Thursday morning, September 28 at Moose Landing.

The top three teams and top three individuals not on a qualifying team will advance to the district tournament next week.