GRANITE CITY • A combination of depth and consistency paid off for the Edwardsville boys golf team on Tuesday.
With Drew Curtis shooting a 3-over-par 75, the Tigers won the Class 3A Collinsville Regional at Arlington Greens. Edwardsville and second-place Quincy each shot 308, but the Tigers' Conner Bradley (80) edged Reid Beaty and Zach Kulhman-Pfeifer (both at 81) in a fifth-score tiebreaker.
Michael Pfitzner (77), Nick Bryant (78) and Cameron Hicks (78) rounded out the top four for Edwardsville. Collinsville, led by Adam Garcia's 74, finished third at 311.
The top three teams and the top 10 individuals not on qualifying teams advance to the Joliet Central Sectional Monday at Inwood Golf Course.
"The old adage that every stroke counts certainly showed through today," Edwardsville coach Dene Schickedanz said. "In 15 years of coaching, it was probably the most difficult pin placements that I've seen. I'm just glad we got out of here and we were fortunate enough to come away with the win."
It's a 3 1/2-hour drive to Joliet, but Schickedanz feels the Tigers will be ready for the sectional.
"This is the reason that we travel all over and go to Chicago a couple times," Schickedanz said. "We try to get the kids used to staying in a hotel and playing outside of their comfort zone.
"I certainly like our chances up there. It's not a banger's course -- it's short and tight and almost every hole has a water hazard. We'll go up and play a practice round on Sunday."
Curtis. who was the top individual in last week's Southwestern Conference Tournament at Belk Park, looked sharp again, shooting 36 on the back nine.
"Winning the regional -- you can't get much better than that. Hopefully we'll take it on to the sectional," Curtis said. "The course did not play easy today. The pins were extremely difficult, and I'm surprised that so many people played well."
For Collinsville, Keenai Sampson and Jordan Bost each shot 76, while Branden Henson and Matt Sockoch each carded an 85 to account for the fourth-best score.
Collinsville's Garcia, who shot 36 on the back nine, tied Springfield's Mitchell Connolley for the second-best score. Quincy's Zach Burry earned medalist honors with a even-par 72.
"We came in with a plan of what we wanted to do, with this being our home course," Collinsville coach Dan Munoz said. "We had a couple dumb penalties that cost us four strokes, or we would have come in with a better score, but I'm happy to be moving on.
"Adam Garcia was the Madison County champ, and he's been real consistent all year. He's playing his best golf down the stretch, and there's nothing more I can ask for."
Springfield (313) and O'Fallon (319) rounded out the top five team scores. O'Fallon's Nolan Frisch shot 75 to advance to the sectional, while teammates Luke Gray and Brett Maggio, each with an 81, were among three players who advanced in a five-way playoff. Springfield's Michael Hamrick (77) and Jack Campas (79) also qualified.
Belleville West placed sixth in the nine-team field at 326. Sectional qualifiers for the Maroons were Cade Dibadj (76) and Parker Beine (77).
It wasn't a good day for Alton. The Tigers, who won Saturday's Dick Gerber Invitational at Oak Brook after winning the SWC Tournament, posted a 327 on Tuesday. Ray Stanard, Evan Franklin and Clint Cress all shot 81, but only Stanard qualified out of the five-way playoff.
Belleville East (342) and Granite City (360) placed eighth and ninth, respectively. No East golfers advanced to the sectional, while Devin Desper (77) was the lone qualifier for Granite City.
