IRVINE – Woodbridge boys golf coach Tracy Roberts never wants the Warriors to pay too much attention to what the competition, so he always likes to set a goal for each match, so his starters have a reason to focus on their own games.
For Thursday, shooting a 2-over-par 182 in the wind at Rancho San Joaquin Golf Course seemed like a doable number for Roberts.
And in the end it turned out to be a score that proved to be a bit historic too.
The No. 2 Warriors posted the round that Roberts wanted and beat University, 182-206, wrapping up the extremely competitive Pacific Coast League.
Hide Yoshihara, Justin Sheparovich and Nick Kumamoto become the first seniors in school history to win three PCL title a four-year span.
“It is cool. To be able to win as a team means a lot more than winning by myself,” Yoshihara said. “Three wins in that four, that is 75 percent. We have been doing well as a team. We have gotten good players coming every year. That helps, but the team really cares about itself so that is a reason too.”
On Thursday, all five of the Warriors’ scoring players posted a score in the 30s. Kumamoto led Woodbridge, medaling with a 1-under-par 35 while Yoshihara and freshman Vikram Chatterjee, who was playing in only his third match, added an even-par 36.
Yoshihara finished his final varsity season with a nine-hole scoring average that was slightly more than a stroke and a half under par.
Freshman Paul Sun and Joseph Chun each carded a 38 to round out the scoring for the Warriors (14-2, 8-2).
“I couldn’t be more proud of the leadership of the seniors, and we had two freshmen really step up,” Roberts said. “This has been the most competitive high school league I have ever experienced, and when you look at our scores in comparison to other leagues, there is no doubt that this is the best league in the state. We have teams that shot incredible scores.”
Three of the six teams in the PCL posted at least one score in the 170s during the season, meaning they finished under par as a team – Woodbridge, University and Northwood.
The Warriors set a high school course record at Oak Creek Golf Club when they shot an 8-under-par 172 in beating the Timberwolves. Woodbridge posted two rounds in the 170s this season and finished with a 184 scoring average, a one stroke improvement over last year.
“Overall, it has just been a great year,” Roberts said. “In this league this year, if you didn’t bring you stuff, you got beat.”
