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The Salisbury boys’ golf team is used to winning.
This May, the Hornets rewrote their championship resume once again, winning their second straight N.C. High School Athletic Association Class 2A state title by 31 strokes over runner-up North Lincoln.
Salisbury was led by senior and Observer Player of the Year Alex Nianouris, who shot a two-day total of 4-under-par (140) to tie for the lead before falling in a playoff and finishing as state runner-up.
Nianouris, the Regional Player of the Year who will play golf at Davidson next season, also got a lot of help from Troy Beaver, who not only won the Central Carolinas Conference title, but also the 2A West Regional championship. Salisbury’s Eric Edwards, Clark Alcorn, Alex Lee and Joseph Rusher also made big contributions on a team that had six players capable of being their best player.
Meanwhile, Gastonia Forestview also had a championship run to remember, winning the Big South Conference and then the 3A state championship after three runner-up finishes in the last six years.
Forestview golf coach Ken Beatty not only takes home a state title, but also the Observer Coach of the Year and Regional Coach of the Year honors.
Will Long led the way at states, finishing as 3A state runner-up, while Alex Taylor, Will Blalock also played huge roles for the Jaguars. Taylor and Blalock tied for fifth and eighth, respectively, in the state tournament.
Meanwhile, Hough’s David Sargent, a Davidson signee, was named Mecklenburg Player of the Year after winning the I-Meck title and the 4A West Regional championship before finishing tied for 13th at the state tournament.
Hough coach Erik Herberth led the Huskies to an I-Meck Conference and 4A West Regional title in the program’s second year. The Huskies also finished fifth at the 4A state meet.
