Kruse medalist, Newell-Fonda girls win split golf dual at GTRA

Landen Kruse shot a blistering 34 at Graettinger, but Newell-Fonda left the Twin Lakes Conference dual with two very different results to sort through. The Mustangs’ boys had the meet’s best individual round and still fell short, 156-147, while the girls posted a 192 to beat an incomplete GTRA lineup.

For the boys, Kruse’s score was the clear highlight. Jacksyn Hogrefe backed him with a 37, keeping Newell-Fonda within striking distance, but GTRA’s balance proved enough to hold the team edge. Kellen Meyer shot a 42, and Carter Emerick and Ian Harrer each carded 43s to round out the Mustang scorecard. Andrew Greenfield was also listed for Newell-Fonda.

The narrow loss fit a recent stretch in which the Mustangs have been living on the edge in conference play. Newell-Fonda beat Storm Lake St. Mary’s at Buena Vista University Lake Creek on April 10, with Hogrefe medalist at 42 and Kruse runner-up at 44. Two weeks later, the Mustangs edged Alta-Aurelia on a tiebreaker after both teams finished at 177, and then they won a Twin Lakes Conference quadrangular at Pocahontas by 10 strokes, with Kruse and Hogrefe each shooting 41 in a 167 team total. Against GTRA, Kruse’s 34 was his sharpest round in that run, but it still was not enough to turn an individual surge into a team victory.

The girls’ side told the other half of the night. Emma Hurd earned medalist honors with a 42, and Rowyn Nielsen finished as runner-up medalist with a 48. Paige Erickson added a 49, Alyssa Hutchinson shot 53, Camryn Puhrmann carded a 54 and Danika Meyer finished at 61 as Newell-Fonda assembled enough depth to secure the win.

That outcome continued a steady conference pattern for the Mustang girls, who had already won a Twin Lakes Conference quadrangular at Gowrie on April 13. In that meet, Hurd and Nielsen each shot 49, and Hurd won a handicap-hole tiebreaker for medalist honors as Newell-Fonda finished at 210. The split against GTRA showed both sides of the program at once: the boys have the kind of low-end scoring that can win anywhere, while the girls are building enough depth to turn solid rounds into team results.