Gazette-Times

They have played in strong winds, rain, hail storms and the cold.

Now they hope to finally have some good weather when their rounds of golf matter most.

Mid-Willamette Conference golfers are ready to make a run at district titles the next two days, and punch their tickets to the state tournaments.

The boys get underway at 10 this morning at Trysting Tree, while the girls head to Woodburn to play a tough Tukwila Course beginning at 11:45 a.m.

Both tournaments are two days, with the top two teams advancing to the state tournament the following week at the same courses.

On the boys side, West Albany enters as the slight favorite after winning four of the five MWC tournaments this season to finish with 39 out of a possible 40 points.

Teams received eight points for each conference win, and a point less for each place they finished.

Crescent Valley is second with 36 points. The Raiders won one tournament and placed second in the other four.

Meaning once again, the battle for the title should come down to those two schools.

The winner of the two-day district tournament receives 40 points, with second earning 35 and each descending finish five points less.

Corvallis is third with 29 points, and would need to win and have West Albany place third in order to force a tie for second and advance to state by virtue of placing higher at the district tournament.

South Albany is fourth with 26 points.

While the Spartans may be an extreme longshot to make state as a team, the Spartans could send two or three golfers to the state tournament. The top two teams and the top three players not on one of those two teams earns a trip as an individual.

CHS coach Mark Arey said that battle could come down between the Spartans’ Roan Dickey, Michael Davidson and Spencer Huddleson and South Albany’s Tyler Lomax. CHS’s Tayler Schmidt could also make a push for a state berth.

CV won last year’s title at Trysting Tree after West Albany struggled to third at the district meet.

West Albany won last Monday’s final MWC tournament by five strokes over CV.

On the girls side, West Albany is the favorite after winning the title last year and returning all four scorers from that team.

The Bulldogs won four of the five MWC tournaments this season for 39 points. CHS is second with 35 points and CV is third with 32 points. Silverton is a distant fourth.

West Albany ran away with the title last year and has been solid all season with Katie Ortman, Hailey Thomas and Kara Hartman near the top of the leaderboard each week.

Ortman and Thomas tied for medalist honors last year, while Hartman tied for third with Corvallis’ Katie Zajieck.

But if last Monday’s final MWC tournament is any indication, it could be anybody’s tournament to win.

A windy day inflated some scores at Tukwila with West Albany holding on for a close victory over CV and CHS.

The Bulldogs finished with a 392, with CV second at 395 and CHS third at 398.

Whichever teams fail to advance could have three individuals in the state tournament.