Bishop Manogue’s record rally nets title; Foothill’s Montgomery medals

RENO — Foothill’s boys golf team was right where it wanted to be entering the final day of the Division I state tournament.

The Falcons took a two-stroke lead into Wednesday’s second round at Sierra Sage Golf Course.

But as the Falcons, Coronado and Bishop Gorman started on the back nine, word began circulating about what Bishop Manogue had accomplished.

What the Miners ended up accomplishing was an impressive come-from-behind win.

Bishop Manogue shot a state-meet record 5-under-par 350 on the second day to come from 19 strokes back and claim the title with a 734 total, four strokes better than runner-up Foothill. Coronado was third at 751, with Gorman fourth at 785.

“Once we heard the number Bishop Manogue posted, we were fighting,” Foothill coach Paul DeSantis said. “We knew we had to come in with a certain number.”

Foothill senior and UNLV signee Taylor Montgomery, who shot a 6-under 65 on Tuesday, carded a 71 on Wednesday and held on to win the individual title by three strokes over teammate Andrew Chu (72) and Manogue’s Nick Turner (65), who both finished at 139.

“It feels good to win, especially on a golf course that doesn’t really fit my game,” Montgomery said.

Still, Montgomery was disappointed the Falcons didn’t hoist the first-place trophy. “I could have done more to help with that,” he said. “It’s my fault.”

Chu made a charge at his teammate but couldn’t sustain it over the final nine holes.

“I thought I could have played a lot better,” Chu said. “I shot 3 under on the front and kind of blew up on the back.”

With Foothill’s stars struggling, the door was left open for Manogue, which entered the day fourth.

“It was pretty amazing,” Manogue coach Matt Newcomer said. “They pulled it off. They were making birdies out there all over the place. It came down to the wire, so it was pretty pressure-packed and intense to watch.”

On a day when most teams saw their scores increase from the first round because of high winds and fast greens, Manogue shot 34 strokes better than it did in the first round. The team also had the highlight of the tournament when Stephen Osborne aced the par-3 eighth hole.

“They did better than us, and they deserve it,” Chu said.