The Lancaster varsity boys’ golf team jumped  ahead of River Valley in the Southwest Wisconsin Conference standings by winning last Tuesday’s conference meet held at the Dodge/Point Country Club.

With an impressive team score of 157, the Flying Arrows finished 10 strokes ahead of second-place River Valley, and 14 strokes ahead of third-place Dodgeville.

With three conference meets remaining, coach Brad Sturmer’s squad now sits atop the league standings with 17 points, while River Valley is second with 16 and Dodgeville third with 12.

Leading Lancaster with a two-over-par score of 37 was senior John VanDeHey, who had seven pars and two bogies to collect medalist honors.

“John has the perfect mentality for golf,” explained coach Sturmer. “He doesn’t get rattled, and I’ve never seen him get upset about anything. That is why he is a consistently good golfer.”

Following VanDeHey’s 37 were teammates Zach Hentrich, Andrew Gates and Nathan Farrey, all of whom shot a four-over-par round of 40.

“Although they broke the 160 mark, this isn’t the best round they have in them,” said coach Sturmer. “They need to keep focusing on the process and not the results.”

“I can see improvement in how they are playing the game each time they are going out there, and their scores are reflecting that,” added Sturmer. “It was nice to see them break the 160 mark.”

After three conference meets completed, Lancaster junior Zach Hentrich leads the league with 71.5 points.

In a close second with 70 points is Lancaster sophomore Andrew Gates, while VanDeHey moved into third with 69.5. Sophomore Nathan Farrey currently sits eighth with 57.5 points, while senior Connor Flynn is 12th with 40.

Following this past Tuesday’s meet at the Platteville Country Club, Lancaster will play at the House on the Rock Resort on Thursday, and at Reedsburg on Friday.

This Saturday, beginning at 9 a.m., Lancaster hosts the Southwest Cup.

SWC Meet
(from Tuesday, April 30, at the Dodge/Point Country Club, par 35)
Team scores - 1. Lancaster 157; 2. River Valley 167; 3. Dodgeville 171; 4. Prairie du Chien 187; 5. Platteville 210. Richland Center incomplete.
Medalist - John VanDeHey (Lancaster) 37.
Lancaster - John VanDeHey 37, Zach Hentrich 40, Andrew Gates 40, Nathan Farrey 40, Connor Flynn 46.

SWC Golf Standings
(after four conference meets)
Lancaster               23 points
River Valley           21 points
Dodgeville             16 points
Prairie du Chien    11 points
Platteville                9 points
Richland Center      0 points