Porterville golf clinches school's 1st trip to state

Porterville’s golf squad kept the good times rolling in the Team Valley Championships at the Belmont Country Club in Fresno, Tuesday.

The Panthers’ six golfers combined for a total of 380 strokes, narrowly missing out on first place behind Clovis West (377).

But because the Panthers finished second, they earned their first invitation in school history to the CIF/SCGA SoCal state championships on June 3rd in Murrieta.

Garces (Bakersfield) actually tied Porterville’s overall score, but officials used the sixth-man scores from each roster as a tie-breaker.

Porterville’s No. 6, Quinn Procter, netted an 85 — 13 strokes better than Garces’ sixth man.

The Panthers were led by No. 1 Nate Jessup, who broke even with a 72.

Kris Kennel and Mikey McGinn each shot a 1-over-par 73 while DJ Stone (80) and Barrett Schortman (82) rounded out a solid outing for the Panthers.

“It’s exciting — this team has made history for Porterville,” Panthers coach Lynn Enos said. “Competition was tough, but this team has worked very hard and I’m very proud of them.”

Clovis West’s Michael Weaver, bound for Cal this fall, carded a tournament-best 3-under-par 69.