It's time to go back to the links

It was the first day of school in Marshall County Wednesday, and after a couple of abbreviated hours on the classroom do's and dont's, the Cornersville and Marshall County High School golf teams hitched up their golf bags for the 2nd Annual It's Time Golf Tournament, featuring the two District 11A/AA squads.

It was also one of the hottest days of the summer so far with temperatures reaching triple digits near the end of the oven cooker at the Lewisburg Recreation Center Golf Course in Lewisburg.

Marshall County senior Justin Killian got off to a topsy-turvy start at the 2,846-yard nine-hole layout, going birdie, bogey, birdie, bogey before coming in at one over par (37) for the round to take top honors for the Tigers, who retained the winners' plaque by besting the Frog Bottom squad 187-165.

"We were ready to play today," said MCHS coach Brent Johns. "I am really pleased with the way we played. We had a veteran team last year that came out here on this same day and shot 164, we've got a really young team this year that came out and shot 165, just one shot behind last year, so I am really pleased."

Next in the line for the Tigers (1-1) was junior Miller Sale, who Johns called the surprise of the day when he signed his card with a 40.

Johns said, "Last year on this same day, Miller physically could not walk these nine holes, but this year, he was like a veteran out there. That was huge."

Austin Blade, Jacob Griffis, and Ben Briggs all traversed the course with identical forty-fours on the scorecard for Marshall County, while Ryan McDaniel finished with 48 and Brooks Leftwich 50.

The top four combined scores are used to determine a winner in high school golf.

A hungry Jacob 'Pops' Griffis, who shot a respectable 44 for his nine-holes, led Brent Adcox's Cornersville squad.

"We played ok for our first outing," said Adcox. "We lost three golfers off last year's team and we had two kids in their first match they ever played. For our first outing, I was pretty pleased."

The powerful Neal Adams and first timer Tate Lowery both recorded identical 46's, followed by Andrew Belt's 54 and Taylor Carlton's 73.

The Cornersville Lady Bulldogs suited up four players for the match, but once again, Marshall County is void of girl golfers on the team.

"We got a good looking girls team coming back," said Adcox. "We expect big things out of them and hope to get another trip back to the region."

Lady Dawg Kaylee Cook played with the guys and recorded a 51, while Kaitlyn Rogers, Martha Jane McMasters, and Samantha Reese teed it up for a scramble and recorded a three-over par thirty-nine in a nice display of some timely chipping and putting.

Adcox said, "Kaylee Cook played with the boys and I was proud of the way she held her own. The thing we have talked about with the girls is being able to read the putts and read the greens and I think that is paying off for them."

Johns was pleased with the camaraderie amongst the two county squads, saying, "We have a good time playing with them, our kids get along well with them, and we have a lot of fun."

On Tuesday at the Rec Center, all three Marshall County schools will hook up for county bragging rights.