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Malheur County teams fight the cold and wind for par

 Nyssa’s Josh Duckworth found himself in a little trouble, but out of the wind, chipping out of the gully toward the green during the Vale Invitational. Golfers braved cold, windy conditions with Burns taking the boys title and the host Vikings taking the girls crown. (The Enterprise/John L. Braese)

ONTARIO – Dark clouds occasionally spat snow flurries. Wind gusts played havoc with drives. 

Golfers, with the exception of Nyssa’s Josh Duckworth, wore attire that more suited duck hunting than a day on the links. Even with the temperatures hovering near freezing, Duckworth cruised the course in shorts and a short-sleeved shirt. 

This was the day as Vale welcomed surrounding teams for the Vale Invite on Thursday at Country View Golf Course.

The Burns Hilanders won the boys title, shooting a 202 team score. Vale, with 237, was second.

For the girls, only Vale fielded a team score, and shot a 237 for the title.

Individually, Vale’s Miranda Raven was second with a score of 51, one stroke behind Burns’ Hadley Marshall.

Hilander David Wilson shot a 44 to take the individual boys title. The best showing for the Vikings was a 54 by Trevor Romans.

“This was a very good effort again by our girls,” said Vale coach Tom Snook. “Their team score was very good and all of them shot their best nine hole scores of the year. The boys are making good progress; we had some personal bests with them as well.”

With a number of freshmen on the team, Snook said, experience and time on the course is the key for Vale.

“All of the kids have been pretty good about working toward getting better each week,” he said. “We are very inexperienced this year so progress has been slow but getting better.”

RESULTS: Girls: Vale, 237 (Miranda Raven, 51. Morgan King, 55. Roni Rindlisbacher, 65. Hannah Hansen, 66. Sydney Bolyard, 69). Ontario, N/A (Alanna Stark, 55). Nyssa, N/A (Zanzia Suarez, 57. Abi Wachtel, 55). Boys: Vale, 236 (Trevor Romans, 54. Josh Duckworth, 59. Joseph Bentz, 59. Matt Arritola, 64. Webban Mason, 67). Ontario, N/A (Alexander Nott, 73. Nyssa, N/A (Josh Dorathy, 66. Kessen Kimbal, 81).

Reporter John L. Braese: [email protected], 541-473-3377.