By By SCOTT NOVAK / Niles Daily Star
NILES - Lakeshore pulled into a first place tie with Niles in the Big 16 Conference West Division golf race Monday afternoon.
The Lancers shot 149 as a team to finish eight strokes ahead of Niles, which finished second with a 157.
St. Joseph finished third with a total of 161, while Dowagiac was fourth with a 164. Benton Harbor finished fifth with a 233.
The Vikings and Lancers are now tied atop the division with 18 points. St. Joseph is third with 12 points and Dowagiac fourth with eight points. Benton Harbor is fifth with four points.
Niles' Alex Welch was a medalist on Monday with a 36.
The Vikings also got a 38 from Jeff Jurgonski, a 39 from Chris Haas and a 44 from Nick Horn. Scott Majerek finished with a 45 and D.J. Wolnick a 46.
Dowagiac was led by Nick Krizinski's 38.
Kevin Proshwitz shot a 40, while Mike Hoff shot a 42. Zack Russom finished with a 44, with Jared Schinske shooting 45. Richie Hutchinson shot a 47 to round out the scoring for the Chieftains.
The Lancers had three golfers with 37s, while C.J. Wright shot a 38. Shooting 37 were Tom Valha, Jeff Ott and Sam Bitterman.
Niles returns to the links next Tuesday when it competes in the first of two Big 16 Conference Tournaments at Thornapple north of Kalamazoo.
The Big 16 West Division returns to action a week from Thursday (Sept. 8) when Lakeshore hosts the next Big 16 West jamboree at Berrien Hills.
JV golf
Niles hosted a Big 16 West Division jamboree on Monday at Orchard Hills Country Club.
The Vikings won the match with a team score of 192. Lakehsore and St. Joseph tied for second with a 211, while Dowagiac was fourth with a 240.
Jordan Hendricks led the Vikings with a 46, while Jared Kabara and Warren Simpson both shot 48.
Nick Musser shot 50, while Sam Hatch and David Ralston both finished with a 55.
The West Division junior varsity squads get back in action a week from Thursday as well when Dowagiac hosts a jamboree at Hampshire Country Club.