The fall sports season is over for most Windsor athletes. But for three, it will continue – in the spring. 

 

Senior golfers Max Evans and Alex Hubal, and junior Andrew Saar have qualified for the Section IV Championships at Cornell May 16 & 18. For Saar, it will be his second trip to the Sectional IV Championship. For Evans and Hubal, their first. Hubal finished the regular season with a team-best match average of 3.46 strokes over par.

 

“He was easily the most improved golfer on the team. His scoring average improved an impressive four shots per nine holes over his junior season,” said Coach Bruce Bedford.

 

 

 

Hubal had a personal-best 1-over par 73 at the Section IV Class B Championship at En-Joie in Endicott. That was the 3rd-best individual finish of the day and helped lead Windsor to a 2nd-place finish. His strong season earned him Windsor’s Golf Coaches Award for team best average and a berth on the STAC East All-Star team. 

 

The season also proved just how far Hubal has come since his freshman year.

 

“I was in the 12 spot, the worst player on the team freshman year,” said Hubal.

 

The turning point was a summer job after his sophomore year at Golden Oak Country Club that allowed him to play nine holes every day.

 

“It made me more confident and allowed me to play better. Those first two years I was afraid to hit golf shots because I didn’t know where the ball was going,” said Hubal. 

 

Saar is only the 6th Windsor player in the last 15 seasons to earn two trips to the Sectional Qualifier at Cornell.  And with his senior year remaining, he has a chance to be only the 4th to have earned three.  He had the team’s lowest single match of the season, a 1-under par 34 at home vs Chenango Valley.

 

“I started out strong but felt like I dropped off at the end. It was disappointing. I felt like I could have done better,” said Saar.

 

 

 

Saar made the second day of Sectional play at Cornell last June, but fell three strokes shy of qualifying for the State Championship. He’s looking to shave those strokes of his score next June. 

 

“I’m not going to be as nervous. But, this tournament is bigger. Everyone who is there deserves to be there. This means more to me,” said Saar.

 

Evans also felt like he had a slow start but worked through issues as the season went along. 

 

“I had a rough start but toward the middle of the season I figured out what I had to do,” said Evans. “I worked and didn’t give up. It was about combining all of the components at the same time when I took a shot.”

 

 

 

Evans has been a thre-year starter on the Varsity, playing in 35 straight STAC matches and steadily improving each season.  He was the team’s medalist on last year’s Section IV Championship team, shooting an 81 at The Links at Hiawatha Landing. He duplicated that score in this year’s Section IV Class B tournament at En-Joie GC. His ability to play well in big moments could serve him well at the Sectional Championship.

 

“It’s going to be another tournament but it’s exciting because I’ve got a chance to make the state team,” said Evans.  

 

The 20 golfers with the best scores on day one of the two-day Section IV Tournament will move on to day two. The Nine best scores from the two days total will advance to the State Championship June 1-3 at Cornell.