Only one of the 12 desert golfers in the field was able to advance out of a CIF-Southern Section individual preliminary tournament in Victorville on Monday.
Ayden Rosales of Xavier Prep fired a 2-under 70 at Bear Valley Country Club, tying him for seventh in the 132-player Central Regional preliminary. That means Rosales will be the only individual from the desert to play in the CIF-SS individual championship May 21 at River Ridge Golf Club in Oxnard.
Only the top 20 players and ties in the Bear Valley regional advance to the Southern Section finals. Rosales, a junior and one of eight qualifiers from the Desert Empire League, started his day with an eagle on the par-5 16th hole, then added four birdies and four bogeys the rest of the round to finish along in seventh play with his 70. Jansen Baek of Sunny Hills High School in Fullerton the medalist in the regional with a 67.
One golfer from Palm Desert High School, freshman Vilami Kepu, missed advancing Monday by a single shot. Six golfers tied for 20th at 73, advancing all six to the finals. Kepu fired a 74, starting on the 14th hole and making three bogeys in his first five holes. He added two more bogeys on the first and third holes before turning his game around with birdies on the eighth, 11th and 12th holes.
Cash Tompoles of Palm Desert, the DEL individual champion, finished tied for 40th in the event with a 76. Three desert golfers, Sergio Rojo and Charlie Menke of Xavier and Ben Carlton of Yucca Valley, individual champion of the Desert Valley League, all shot 79.
Other desert golfers in the field included Chris Starke of Xavier (84), Blake Morrison of Yucca Valley (86), Sterling Conley of Xavier (91), Joe Mejia of Xavier (93), Carlos Lopez of Coachella Valley (95) and Gabriel Narez of Indio (97).
Xavier, the champion of the DEL, will play in a team regional qualifier May 18 in Long Beach, while DVL champion Yucca Valley will play in a team regional in Victorville on May 19.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Xavier’s Rosales advances to CIF-SS boys golf finals with 70 in regional
Reporting by Larry Bohannan, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
