Chapter 8: Golf
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Intro: El Paso Area High Schools and UIL Texas State Sport Championships Chapter 1: Football Chapter 2: Basketball Chapter 3: Baseball & Softball Chapter 4: Soccer Chapter 5: Volleyball Chapter 6: Cross County & Track and Field Chapter 7: Tennis Chapter 8: Golf Chapter 9: Swimming Chapter 10: Cathedral Swimming Chapter 11: Wrestling
Chapter 12
2014-2015 Review Final Totals UIL Team State Championships UIL Individual State Championships TAPPS Team State Championships TAPPS Individual State Championships
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El Paso has world class weather. El Paso has excellent golf courses. El Paso has been or is the home of such great golfers like Lee Trevino, Rich Beem, Steve Haskins, Kristi Albers, J.P. Hayes, and Paul Stankowski. All of this would lead you to the conclusion that the El Paso schools must have produced many individuals and teams that have won state championships in the sport of golf. Such is not the case. I searched the UIL records and could only find four state championships that have been won by individuals or teams from an El Paso public high school. Private and parochial schools have not done any better.
Coronado High School's golf teams (boys and girls) have dominated the district competitions for many years. The Thunderbird girls' team has won 32 district championships including a period of 20 straight titles (1976-1995) and another streak of 11 years (1998-2008). The Coronado girls also won the district title in 2013. The girls' team has also won 5 Regional titles in 1988, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004. The T-Bird boys have done even better. The Coronado boy's teams have won 37 district titles, including 31 straight championships (1965-1995), and have also won titles in 2000, 2005, 2006, 2011-2013. The boy's team has won Regional titles in 1991 and 1993 and won the UIL Texas State 5A Golf Championship in 1992. Members of the state championship team were Greg DiDonna, Steve Wilson, Andy Lawson, Jeff Jumper, and Tommy Lewis. DiDonna, Lawson, and Lewis were named to the 1992 All-State team. Jordan Bucy was named to the All Regional team in 2007 and Ross Rotwein was named to the All-State team in 2007.
Resource: https//sites.google.com/site/coronadotbirdgolf/home
A search of the TAPPS' record reveals only three state championships. My resources for this chapter have been uiltexas.org and tapps.net unless otherwise noted. My research shows the following results:
The Championships
1994-1995 Hanks High School: Led by Jessie Sosa won the 5A Texas UIL State Golf Team Championship. Unfortunately, the team members and their scores were not listed by the UIL.
1994-1995 Hanks High School: Jessie Sosa won the Individual 5A Texas UIL State Golf Championship with a two day score of 142.
1991-1992 Coronado High School: The Thunderbirds won the 5A Texas UIL State Golf Team Championship. Team members for the '92 men's team were Greg DiDonna, Steve Wilson, Andy Lawson, Jeff Jumper, and Tommy Lewis. DiDonna, Lewis, and Lawson were named to the All-State team for their performance during the tournament.
1978-1979 Clint High School: Kyle McCardle won the 1A Individual Texas UIL State Golf Championship. No score was listed.
2004 El Paso Immanuel High School: EP Immanuel girls' team won the TAPPS' Team Golf Championship. Rachael Romack finished 3 rd in the tournament with rounds of 96 and 91 (187 two round total). Sam McCardel finished 5 th with rounds of 97 and 96 (193 two round total).
2001 Cathedral High School: The Irish won the TAPPS' 5A Team Golf Championship with a score of team score of 623. Members of the team and their scores are listed as Mark Javernek (150-75, 75 1 st place); Rufus Brijalba (157-76, 81 7 th place tie); Gregory Miller (157-78, 79 7 th place tie); Joshua Spencer (167-89, 78); Geoffrey Borschow (165- 81, 84).
2001 Cathedral High School: Mark Javernek won the TAPPS' 5A Individual Golf State Championship.
Best Finishes by Other Individuals or Teams
2011-2012 Eastwood High School: The Troopers girls' team finished 4 th in the state with a team score of 606. Members of the team included Amber Herrera, Alexia Heist, Aries Ramirez, Dell Blair, and Deana Portillo.
2010-2011 Eastwood High School: The Troopers girls' team finished 2 nd in the state with a team score of 606. Eastwood was runner-up to Austin Westlake (591). Alexia Heist finished 2 nd in the state with a two round score of 142. Aries Ramirez finished 8 th in the state with a two round score of 150. Other team members were Dell Blair, Amber Herrera, and Laura Barron.
2009-2010 Cathedral High School: The Irish finished 6 th in the state with a team score of 640. Alberto Almada finished 9 th in the state with a score of 154.
2009-2010 Loretto Academy: Loretto finished 6 th in the state with a team score of 826.
2008-2009 Cathedral High School: The Irish finished 4 th in the state with a team score of 624. Jake Spenser finished 3 rd in the state with a score of 146 and Alberto Almada finished 9 th in the state with a score of 155. Other members of the team were Larry Lopez, Matthew Lopez, and Arturo Cardenas.
2007-2008 Cathedral High School: The Irish finished 6 th in the state with a team score of 619. Members of the team were Jose Contreras (152), Filiberto Cruz (155), Larry Lopez (158), Jake Spenser (159), and Alberto Almada (152).
2007-2008 Loretto Academy: Loretto Academy finished 4 th in the state. Members of the team were Paola Medina, Stephanie Teaney, Mary Francis Benning, Anahi Quezada, and Alexis Solis.
2006-2007 Cathedral High School: The Irish finished 4 th in the state and team member Filiberto Cruz finished 2 nd in the individual standings with a score of 149.
2005-2006 Cathedral High School: The Irish finished 4 th in the team standings with a score of 629 and Jose Luis Contreras finished 3 rd in the individual standings with a score of 150.
2004-2005 Cathedral High School: The Irish finished 3 rd in the team standings with a score of 655. Andrew Widmar finished 2 nd in the individual standings with a score of 150. Other members of the team were Philip Mijares, Oscar Fierro, Filiberto Cruz, and Ruben Rivas.
2004-2005 Joomin Choi of El Paso Immanuel finished 4 th in the TAPPS 2A classification with a score of 166.
2003-2004 Cathedral High School: Cathedral finished 2 nd in the state team standings. The Irish were led by Travis Hendryx two round total of 158 which placed him 6 th in the individual standings.
2018 Golf Update
E astwood and EPHS dominate Local Golf Scene
Coronado High School use to be the dominant force in El Paso area golf. The T-Birds even won a state championship in 1992. The Thunderbird dominance would appear to be over, at least in 2018. Eastwood was the dominant 6A team in both boys and girls golf. El Paso High was the winner in 1-5A in both boys and girls golf. The Eastlake boys won the 2-5A crown while the Hanks took the 2-5A title in girls golf.
6A Golf
Boys
1 st 2 day total 610
2 nd Coronado
Top Individuals Alex Delgadillo Eastwood 149 and Nick Myers Eastwood 150
Girls
1 st Eastwood A Team 2 day total 650
2 nd Eastwood B Team 686
Top individuals Valeria Enriquez Eastwood 157 2 day total and Amanda Portillo Eastwood 162
5A Golf
1-5A Boys
1 st EPHS 783
2 nd Burges 807
Top Individual Trey Turner EPHS 161 and Blaise Solem Andress 171
1-5A Girls
1 st EPHS 908
2 nd Chapin 975
Top Individual Isabella Armendariz EPHS 180
2-5A Boys
1 st Eastlake 766
2 nd Del Valle 772
Top Individuals Roman Guerrero Del Valle 161 and Ethan Jasso Del Valle 170
2-5A Girls
1 st Hanks 812
2 nd Eastlake 892
Top Individuals Natalie Sanchez Eastlake 170
No El Paso area golfers or teams qualified for the state tournament after Regional play. Eastwood's boys team was the top El Paso team at Regionals finishing 10 th while Coronado's boys team finished in 14 th place. Alex Delgadillo finished tied for 30 th place and team mate Nick Myers finished tied for 42 nd place.
2017 Golf Update
You would think that the El Paso area high schools would do well in the sport of golf considering the world class fall, winter, and spring weather that the city enjoys. Such has not been the case in several years and that held true for 2017.
There were no individuals or teams that qualified for the state tournament after Regional play. This does not mean that the El Paso area is without golf talent. Golf is such an individual sport where you are playing against yourself as well as the golf course. The golf courses won this year.
There are several schools in the El Paso area that excel in the sport of golf. Here are the results of the district tournaments for 2017:
6A Boys 1st place Coronado A 613 team, 2nd place Eastwood A team 624, 3rd place Franklin A team 644
Top Individual Players: Greg Yellin Coronado 138, Antonio Quevedo Coronado 147, Alex Clarke Franklin 148, and Alex Delgadillo Eastwood 157
6A Girls 1st place Eastwood A 672, 2nd place Coronado A 693, 3rd place Eastwood B 753 Top Individuals Players: Valeria Enriquez Eastwood 161, Daniella Uribarri Eastwood 168, and Marian Loaeza Coronado 171
District 1-5A Boys 1st EPHS A 806, 2nd Burges A 816, 3rd Chapin A 875 Top Individual Players: Christian Moody EPHS 176, Jaden Fiocca Burges 190, and Trey Turner EPHS 192
District 1-5A Girls 1st EPHS A 871, 2nd Irvin A 952, 3rd Chapin A 982 Top Individual Players: Isabella Armendariz EPHS 193, Jordyn Hunt EPHS 210, and Progga Hassan EPHS 213
District 2-5A Boys 1st Del Valle A 726, 2nd Eastlake A 803, 3rd Hanks A 811 Top Individual Players: Roman Guerrero Del Valle 168, Ethan Jasso Del Valle 173, and Anthony Villalobos Bel Air 174
District 2-5A Girls 1st Hanks A 817, 2nd Eastlake A 872, and 3rd Del Valle A 978 Top Individual Players: Faith Alvarado Hanks 183, Monica Guerrero Del Valle 185, and Natalie Sanchez Eastlake 195
2016 Golf Update
It has been many years since an El Paso area team or individual has won a state championship in golf. Sadly, 2016 would be no exception. The 1995 Hanks High School golf team was the last public high school to win a title. They were led by Jessie Sosa who won the individual state championship. The story has been much the same for the TAAPS schools. The 2004 Immanuel Christian team was the last private school to win a title. The last individual to win a state championship was Mark Javernek of Cathedral High School who won the TAPPS individual title in 2001 while leading his team-mates to the team state championship. The following is a summary of the
2015-2016 school year:
6A: Coronado High School has long dominated the El Paso area high school golf scene. That was partially true this year. The Lady T-Birds won the 1-6A golf title while the Coronado boys finished 2nd. Eastwood and Franklin have been the schools that also usually do well in 6A golf and that was true this year.
Boys Golf 1) Eastwood 2) Coronado 3) Franklin 4) Eastwood B
Girls Golf 1) Coronado A 2) Eastwood A 3) Eastwood B 4) Franklin
Coronado and Eastwood represented the El Paso area at the 6A Regional tournament. The Coronado boys and the Eastwood boys both finished tied for 11th place. Michael Salazar of Eastwood was the top El Paso performer with his 17th place finish shooting a two day total of 147. Greg Yellen of Coronado shot a two day total of 149 and finished tied for 27th place. Michael Salazar was named to the All-State Honorable Mention Team. The Eastwood girls finished 12th at the Regional tournament while the Coronado girls finished tied for 13th place. Brenda Dominguez of Americas was the top El Paso performer with her two day total of 166 which was good enough to finish in a 30th place tie. Rosie Schoemann of Coronado finished in 46th place with a two day total of 173 shots.
2014 Golf Update
Coronado High School continued its dominance in 1-5A golf winning both the boys and girls district championships in 2014. It was the 33 rd district title for the T-Bird girls and the 38 th district title for the Coronado boys. The Eastwood High School boys and girls teams finished second in the district competition. The Thunderbirds and the Troopers represented El Paso in the 5A Regional Tournament where their seasons came to a halt. The Coronado boys team finished in 11th place at the Regionals while the girls team finished the competition in 7 th place. The Eastwood boys finished 13 th at the Regionals and the Trooper girls finished 15 th at the tournament.
The story was much the same in the 1-4A and 2-4A competitions as the El Paso representatives came up short at the Regional tournament. Burges High School won the 1-4A boys title with the Andress Eagles boys finishing second in the district tournament. The Hanks High School boys' team won the 2-4A district titles with Ysleta High School boys finishing in second place. The Regional boys' competition saw Burges finishing in 14 th place, Andress finished in 15 th place and the Hanks boys finished in 13 th place.
The Jefferson High School girls' team won the District 1-4A title and finished in 12 th place at the Regional tournament. The El Paso High School girls finished in second place at the district competition and 16 th at the Regionals. The Hanks High School girls won the District 2-4A title and placed 14 th at the Regional tournament. The Eastwood High School girls finished in second place at the district level and placed 15 th at the Regionals.
2015 Golf Update
Coronado High School continued its dominance in 1-6A golf winning both the boys and girls District championships in 2015. The boys have now won 39 district titles while the girls have won 34. Eastwood High School finished second in the boys and girls district races and the Franklin boys and girls took third place. The T-Bird boys team finished in a tie for 7th at the Regional meet while the Thunderbird girls finished in 11 th place. Eastwood's boys finished in 11 th place at the Regionals while the Trooper girls ranked 16 th .
Jefferson, El Paso High, and Irvin dominated the 1-5A girls' district meet finishing 1 st , 2 nd , and 3 rd respectively. The Tiger girls finished 14 th at the Regionals. El Paso High took 1 st place in the boy's ranks of District 1-5A while Burges and Andress took 2 nd and 3 rd place. The Tiger boys finished 15 th at the Regionals while Burges finished one spot better at 14 th place.
District 2-5A action saw Hanks win the District competition in both the boys and girls races. Eastlake was 2 nd in the girl's competition and Bel Air took 3 rd place. Del Valle and Bel Air finished 2 nd and 3 rd on the boy's side of the District 2-5A race. The Hanks girls finished 9 th at the Regional meet while Eastlake placed 13 th . The Hanks boys finished 12 th at the Regional meet.
The TAPPS area high schools did not fare very well in golf in 2015. I could find no mention of El Paso area teams or players that finished in the TOP 10 of the state rankings.
The El Paso area had no representatives at the state tournament.
More on Kristi Albers
Kristi Arrington Albers is a life-long resident of El Paso, Texas and is one of the best golfers that has ever been born in our city. She attended Coronado High School where she was an All-State performer and finished 3 rd in the UIL Texas State Golf Tournament. Kristi Albers first came to prominence when she won the Sun Country Junior Championship. She accepted a golfing scholarship at the University of New Mexico and competed for the Lobos up to 1985. Kristi won the 1984 New Mexico State Invitational, the New Mexico Amateur's Championship, and the Dick McGuire Invitational during her career with New Mexico. She was a 3 time All-Conference selection and was a 1 st Team All-American honoree during the 1984-1985 golf season. The LPGA was in Kristi Albers future. She qualified for the tour in 1986 on her first attempt and never looked back. Kristi competed on the LPGA tour for 22 years from 1986-2007 which is the longest tenure of any El Paso professional golfer. Albers had four top 15 finishes in LPGA Majors finishing tied for 7 th in the 2001 US Women's Open and tied for 6 th at the 1992 DuMaurier Classic. The highlight of her career came in 1993 when she won the Sprint Classic. She also finished 14 th at the 2000 Kraft Nabisco Classic and tied for 9 th place at the 2002 LPGA Championship. Albers also had 2 hole in ones during her professional career. Kristi Albers still resides in El Paso and is married to long time Channel 9 KTSM sportscaster Fred Albers. Fred Albers also serves as a golf analyst for the Golfing Channel. The couple have one son, Austin, born in 2001. Kristi Albers began the El Paso chapter of First Tee where she serves as the co-chairman of the First Tee Desert Classic Golf Tournament. First Tee is an organization dedicated to teaching sportsmanship and human life skills to the nation's youth through sports. Kristi Albers is also a member of Rotary Club of West El Paso. She and her husband are also inducted members of the Price's El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame.
More on Steve Haskins
Steve Haskins graduated from Coronado High School and then accepted an athletic scholarship to New Mexico State University where he played on the varsity golf team for four years before graduating with a degree in finance. His best year for the Aggies was in 1981 when he was named to the All-American Honorable Mention Team. Haskins graduated from NMSU in 1981 and decided to pursue a career in professional golf in 1984. His first professional victory was the New Mexico Open in 1986 followed by another first place finish at the 1989 Bogey Hill Invitational. Steve Haskins joined the Nationwide Tour in 1990 where he enjoyed great success.
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Intro: El Paso Area High Schools and UIL Texas State Sport Championships Chapter 1: Football Chapter 2: Basketball Chapter 3: Baseball & Softball Chapter 4: Soccer Chapter 5: Volleyball Chapter 6: Cross County & Track and Field Chapter 7: Tennis Chapter 8: Golf Chapter 9: Swimming Chapter 10: Cathedral Swimming Chapter 11: Wrestling
Chapter 12
2014-2015 Review Final Totals UIL Team State Championships UIL Individual State Championships TAPPS Team State Championships TAPPS Individual State Championships
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