By Susan Jenior

Staff Writer

On Tuesday, every Portage County varsity golf team, including 11 boys teams and seven girls teams, will tee off in a shotgun start at 8 a.m. at Raccoon Hill Golf Club in Kent.

The inaugural Portage County High School Golf Championship will include five golfers on each team — 90 golfers in all — competing on the 18-hole fairways of the golf course in Kent.

Organized by Kent Roosevelt girls golf coach Bryan Harvey, and myself, the tournament is supported by title sponsor Fairways at Twin Lakes, along with sponsors Portage Sports and Raccoon Hill.

Many of the athletic departments in Portage County were united in the Portage County League and then in the Portage Trail Conference before teams started splitting, leaving the teams to compete in five different conferences.

But with several of the athletic departments and fans already looking forward to joining back together in 2027 as members of the Greater Portage Athletic Conference, excitement is building to enjoy local competition again.

That spotlight will be seen on Tuesday.

The teams participating include boys teams from Mogadore, Ravenna, Waterloo and Windham, and boys and girls teams from Aurora, Field, Garfield, Kent Roosevelt, Rootstown, Southeast and Streetsboro.

The teams are each bringing five golfers and scores will count for the top-four golfers for team scores.

Spectators are welcome, but must remain one-half hole ahead or behind the golfer they are watching.

At the end, the winning teams for both the boys and girls as well as individuals will be recognized for their outstanding golf.

Both Harvey and myself are excited to welcome the teams and watch the competition among the outstanding golfers in Portage County.

Raccoon Hill Golf Club is located at 485 Judson Road in Kent.

Looking forward to seeing all teams, coaches and spectators on Tuesday for the shotgun start at 8 a.m.

For additional information, email golffam2@gmail.com or text 330-206-9083.

SAMMY MORGAN MEDALIST

Southeast High School junior Sammy Morgan and the Pirates competed in the Ursuline Invitational at Avalon Country Club in Warren.

The Southeast girls finished in fifth place among outstanding teams as Morgan earned medalist honors, firing a 73 on the tough fairways.

As the golfers turned in their scorecards both Morgan and Ellie Hutzler of Hoover were tied with identical 1-over-par 73s. However, a scorecard playoff was used, with Morgan winning on the first handicap hole.

Additional scores shot by the Pirates included: Jenni Mix 96, Emily Morrison 95, Kristen Dillon 94 and Lily Hayes 116.

WATERLOO VIKINGS

The Waterloo Vikings are currently 12-1 in the Mahoning Valley Conference Scarlet Division with one more match and the conference tournament to play.

The Vikes won a close contest against Jackson-Milton at Olde Dutch Golf Course in Lake Milton as Waterloo fired a team total of 166 and Jackson-Milton a 168.

Leading the Vikings was Mason Long 36, Trevor Flarida 40, Jayden Eichler 42 and Grayson Griffin 48 on the Par 36 fairways of Olde Dutch.

The MVAC Tournament is set for Sept. 16 at Salem Hills Golf Course as boys and girls teams in two divisions will compete for conference championships and individual honors.

The tournament and the regular season combine for the teams and players to earn conference honors.