By RYAN ARENA
L’Observateur

LAPLACE — Cameron Torres’ score of 80 led the way as St. Charles Catholic placed third at the Division III District 4 golf match at Squirrel Run last week, advancing the Comets to the Division III District 3 and 4 regional tournament. 

The Comets shot 354 as a team, including scores of 88 by Jacob Jensen, 90 by Daniel Jaubert and 96 by Emile Cupit. 

Catholic-New Iberia won the district championship with a score of 322. Newman finished second with a mark of 327. Patterson finished fourth (369) and Riverside finished fifth (385). 

The top four teams from each district match advanced to the regional, which was scheduled to be played Tuesday (after press time) at Atchafalaya Course in Patterson.

“Going in, I felt we had a chance to finish in the top four,” said St. Charles coach Gary Zeringue. “Knowing that (Squirrel Run) is Catholic-New Iberia’s home course, with they and Newman there I thought they’d be squaring off for first place. We knew about Patterson after we tied with them last season, and I knew Riverside would be a factor because they’re finally at full strength.”

Zeringue said the Comets started off slow but charged down the stretch for the third place finish. 

“When I saw Cameron’s score (on the back nine), I felt pretty good about where we were headed,” said Zeringue. “Daniel Jaubert and Jacob Jensen really came through. That is their kind of course. It’s not a power course. It’s more about finesse.”

While Riverside just missed the cut, the Rebels’ Deuce Wallace advanced to the regional as an individual player, posting a score of 96. After the top four teams advance, the top four individual players from other teams earn “medalist” honors and are selected to compete at the regional. Wallace finished as the second medalist.

“He was a little disappointed since he’d shot 76 in the practice round,” said Riverside coach Roy Aubert. “He had some difficulty putting. He was hitting his driver really well. The putting up there was a little difficult for everyone. Not too many people really lit it up.”

48 players in all qualified for the regional tournament. The top four teams and top four medalists were to advance to the next match, in this case the state championship, which is set to be played next Monday and Tuesday in Shreveport. 

“It’s a long trip, but we’d be happy to make it,” said Zeringue.