NYS Boys Golf Championships: U-E's Bertoni, Horseheads' Printup pace Section 4

Union-Endicott sophomore Dante Bertoni tied for 13th to lead Section 4's nine-player team at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Boys Golf Championships at Mark Twain Golf Course in Elmira.

Horseheads senior Matt Printup, coming off a fall shoulder injury that required surgery, was next-best among Section 4 players with a tie for 29th. The field of 99 players started Sunday and finished Monday, with two withdrawals after the opening round.

Thomas Finn, a senior from Section 8's Locus Valley, won the state title with a 6-under 138 that included a 66 on Sunday and a 72 Monday. CJ. Merritt, of Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK, was runner-up at 2-under 142 (69-73); eighth-grader Josh Yan, of Newburgh Free Academy, finished third at 143 (70-73); and Jack Berl, of Victor, took fourth at 144 (71-73).

More: Corning's Chen leads Section 4 at girls state tourney

Section 8 finished with a top score of 1,037. Section 4 tied for seventh out of nine sections with a score of 1,102.

This was the first time hosting the event for Mark Twain, a Donald Ross-designed course between Horseheads and Elmira. The course was originally to host the tournament in 2020, but the season was canceled. Last school year, there were no state championships in New York.

Eagle among highlights for Bertoni

Bertoni shot a 75 on Sunday and came back with a 74 on Monday. Sunday's round was highlighted by an eagle-birdie finish on holes 17 and 18.

"A couple mistakes that were pretty crucial, but otherwise, pretty good two days," Bertoni said.

"It definitely feels good, and I have high expectations for next year."

A double bogey on the second hole and a birdie on the par-5 fifth Monday left Bertoni 1 over through nine. He came back with birdies on 11 and 12 before back-to-back bogeys. He narrowly missed a par putt on 18.

"I got off the tee pretty well," he said. "Around the greens I struggled, but otherwise it was pretty solid."

Union-Endicott and the rest of the Southern Tier Athletic Conference teams play their seasons in the fall. Bertoni said he had been playing extensively this spring leading up to the Section 4 medalist tournament May 21 at Mark Twain. He was runner-up there with a 154, two strokes behind Maine-Endwell's Joe Underwood.

Printup caps comeback with strong showing

Printup suffered a dislocated shoulder and torn labrum in his left shoulder during a weightlifting session just before the STAC and sectional tournaments in late September. He underwent surgery in November and wasn't cleared for full golf activity until May 9. He had been able to chip and putt in the weeks leading up to that, with a lot of physical therapy prior.

He said once he got past the mental barrier, there have been no limitations. He placed seventh at the sectional qualifier with a score of 162. He was eight strokes better than that at the state tourney, posting rounds of 76 and 78.

Printup was 1 over for the tourney after a birdie on 12 on Monday, but he had a double bogey and three bogeys over his final six holes.

("The two days) definitely went better than I thought," said Printup, who will play college golf at Vermont's Norwich University, where he has earned a four-year Army ROTC scholarship. "Once I saw what I could do after day one, I was hoping to play a little bit better today.

"I played pretty good on the front and was going into the back thinking I could probably put a pretty low number out there today, but the back nine kind of got a hold of me a little bit, and I lost a few strokes here and there. That’s why I ended up in the high 70s today. Other than that, it was a pretty successful tournament in my eyes."

Ithaca's Thomforde paces rest of Section 4

Ithaca junior J.T. Thomforde tied for 33rd to lead the other Section 4 golfers, posting scores of 76 and 79 for a 155 total.

Other Section 4 results: Seton Catholic Central's Michael Bucko tied for 42nd (83-75—158), Lansing's Hunter Baughan tied for 53rd (83-79—162), M-E's Underwood tied for 61st (87-77—164), Spencer-Van Etten/Candor's Jacob Banks placed 69th (80-86—166), Chenango Valley's Justin Wardell was 73rd (81-89—170) and Vestal's Cameron Kretzmer was 83rd (83-91—174).

Quotable

Printup lives five minutes from the golf course, and his cheering section included his parents, WGI President Michael Printup and Stephanie Printup, and some former teammates and close friends, along with Horseheads coach Ed Browning.

"It does really feel like a home tournament for me and it was nice everyone was able to make it," Matt said. "That was definitely a big plus of being at Mark Twain this year. … I couldn’t have asked for a better tournament and a better course to have it at."

Follow Andrew Legare on Twitter: @SGAndrewLegare. You can also reach him at alegare@gannett.com. To get unlimited access to the latest news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: Section 4 results from NYSPHSAA Boys Golf Championships