By Ryan Bisesi
rbisesi@salisburypost.com
LEXINGTON ó Alex Nianouris won a one-hole playoff to claim medalist and Salisbury’s boys golf team won the 2A Midwest Region final at Sapona Country Club Monday afternoon.
The Hornets won comfortably with a score of 299, finishing 12 strokes ahead of second-place West Davidson. Nianouris became Salisbury’s fourth player to medal this year when he birdied the playoff against North Surry’s Taylor Coalson.
ěHe had a great approach shot to get about three feet from the pin and pretty easily made the putt,î said Salisbury coach Dale Synder of Nianouris. ěThat just shows that we can go deep and have any of our guys medal on any given day.î
Nianouris was 3 under par through eight holes before the Hornets hit a rough patch for holes 10 through 14. Roy Dixon was second on Salisbury with a 74 while county champion Eric Edwards finished with a 76 and Clark Alcorn a 77.
No player made par (71) on the course, which Salisbury had played twice during the regular season.
ěWe played the front side a lot, but we don’t ever get to see the back side,î Snyder said. ěWe were more familiar with it than a lot of the teams and it was certainly an advantage. After seeing my guys play 10 through 14, a little bit of worry crept in.î
Salisbury, Central Carolina Conference rival West and North Surry (317) qualified for the state final match next Monday and Tuesday at Longleaf Country Club in Southern Pines.
ěWe were glad to see West Davidson place second,î Synder said. ěThat means we’re playing against some really good competition in the CCC.î
Salisbury finished second in the state last year. The Hornets led the field after Day 1, but North Lincoln overtook the lead and eventually won the title.
ěThere’s some expectations.î Snyder said. ěA lot of people look at us as the favorites. Until North Lincoln loses the title, it’s theirs to lose. We’re looking forward to it. We know what happened last year.î
Central Davidson (329) and South Stokes (339) rounded out the top five. Tommy Raddin (76, Forest Hills), Zach Jones (76, Wilkes Central) and Austin Lynch (77, West Stokes) were state individual qualifiers.