Two days after tying for first place with Hart at Sand Canyon Country Club, Valencia Vikings boys’ golf smoked through their competition in its fourth Foothill League match.
Valencia won with ease after the team’s 388-stroke performance, 12 strokes ahead of the silver Hart Indians. The outing was also six strokes under the team’s finish on Tuesday on the same course.
The Vikings were led by Luke Rimkunas, who finished with 73 strokes (+1), shaving four strokes off his Sand Canyon performance on Tuesday. The senior hit three birdies and went over par on a hole just once.
Rimkunas, a Cal Lutheran-commit, has quietly had a great season for Valencia and delivered yet again for head coach Robert Waters.
“As far as league goes, Luke has really shown steadiness,” Waters said in an email. “Today was a great example of what hard work, maturity and confidence can get you. He manages the course really well and seems to get better each time. Many players have games that resemble a roller coaster, up and down constantly depending on the day. Luke is more of a smooth descent. His scores get lower as the season progresses, which is great to see.”
Valencia still shined as a whole, as four teammates shot under 80 strokes for the first time this season. Ethan Cho and Jack Wilson both finished at 78 strokes (+6) while Jacob Vallestros finished at 79.
Hart sophomore Kai Miyata posted the second best score of the day with a 74-stroke (+2) outing. Nathan Ekins just trailed Miyata, with 78 strokes.
West Ranch’s Tyler Sonnenberg led the Wildcats with a 79-stroke day while teammates Max Singer and Tommy Wilson finished with 80.
Saugus’ Christian Rickett again led the Centurions, matching Wilson and Singer’s mark at 80.
“The boys have slowly been shooting lower each time out,” Waters said. “Today was a good one though, where we finally put it together as a team. It was exactly what we needed to get back into the title hunt.”
Only two league matches remain for Valencia to take over first place. The Vikings currently sit just one stroke behind Hart, while West Ranch only trails by nine.
The Foothill League title is anyone’s right now but Waters will hope to keep seeing improvement and lower totals in the final two matches.
“It was a solid day as a team but there is always room for improvement,” Waters said. “We still tend to make the occasional mental mistake: poor club selection, being too aggressive when it is not needed, etc. We’re working on improving in those areas each time. Our goal as a team is to continue to improve by eliminating mental errors each time.”
Foothill League golf resumes on Tuesday when the teams head to Sand Canyon one more time. The first group of golfers tee off at noon.
