McCann's Kratz, Lee's Fraser Qualify for State Golf Tourney

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires.com Sports
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GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. -- McCann Tech’s Cole Kratz picked the right time to heat up on a frigid day.
 
Kratz carded a 10-over-par 82 on Tuesday at the Western Massachusetts Division 3 Championships at Wyantenuck Country Club to qualify for next Tuesday State Championships as an individual.
 
While many people who spent Tuesday out in the wind and cold may have succumbed to brain freeze as they finished up their fourth hour of exposure, Kratz’s brain was focused on the task at hand heading into a pair of par-4 finishing holes: the 356-yard fourth and 395-yard fifth.
 
“The last two holes, I knew I needed to par those to have a good chance to go to states,” he said. “And I hit a 15-foot putt on the first one to par. On the last one, I put a chip shot to a couple of inches and putted in for par.”
 
Kratz will be joined on Tuesday at Shining Rock in Northbridge by Lee’s Thomas Fraser, who carded an 80.
 
Caleb Farnham of Hopkins was the lone golfer to crack 80, finishing at 7-over 79 to win the individual title and lead the Golden Hawks to a team championship.
 
Hopkins finished at 348 to edge Pioneer Valley (350). Both those schools qualified as teams for the state championship. Finishing just outside the money were the Wildcats, who posted a team score of 356.
 
Lee coach Matt Carlino said it was a disappointing day for the defending sectional champions.
 
“There were tough conditions for everyone, but for us and what our goals are for each individual score, I thought a score in the 340s we’d be able to do,” Carlino said. “Maybe it was too much of an expectation.
 
“We knew we had a chance if we played how we were capable of playing, but we also knew we could lose it. It's not like we were dominating by any means, but I think we could have played better.”
 
Sean McLaughlin (91), Bryce Whalen (92) and Hunter Roosa (93) rounded out the scoring for the Wildcats.
 
The third local team in action on Tuesday was Lenox, which finished at 372 to place in the middle of the pack. Matt Shields led the Millionaires with an 89. Noah Hunter was right behind at 90. Max DiGrigol (95) and Zach Zurrin (98) also scored for Lenox.
 
St. Joseph’s Mike Gingras, playing as an individual, carded a 93.
 
Three of Kratz’s McCann teammates posted respectable scores in the 90s. Brad Tatro finished at 92, and Brian Boudreau and Jake Tower carded a 96 and a 97, respectively.
 
McCann coach Corbin Brassard was happy with McCann’s team score of 367, good enough for fourth place in the nine-team field.
 
“I was happy with how we played,” Brassard said. “I thought we did fairly well. We left some out there, like everyone else, but it was a big improvement from last year.”
 
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