Prep boys golf: Justin Lagera leads Clovis North to first section title

Clovis North High School senior Justin Lagera, headed to Cal with a weighted grade-point average of 4.64, was smart enough not to let a miserable first shot spoil his day in the Central Section Team Championships on Tuesday at Valley Oaks Golf Course.

“I don’t know what happened,” he said of a 6-iron shank on the par-3 hole. “I just remember making contact and the ball going straight right.”

What he’ll remember most is collecting himself quickly, failing to wilt on a 90-degree day and firing a 3-under 69 to lead the Broncos to the first section boys golf title in their eight-year varsity history.

“Making history is always great,” said Lagera (pronounced La-HAIR-A), the smartest of smart on a extraordinarily bright team so good and deep that it denied Clovis West a repeat Division I crown on a day the Peter Kuest-led Golden Eagles shot a 2-over 362.

Clovis North couldn’t be caught with a 3-under 357 in a 10-team tournament that combined play at the venue’s Valley and Oaks courses.

The Broncos, who beat Clovis West by 17 strokes in last week’s North Area Tournament, also received a 70 from Bryce Loosigian, a 71 from Peter Faragia, a 73 from Kyle Stewart and a 74 from Blake Hathcoat.

Lagera was not named All-Tri-River Athletic Conference on a seven-player team featuring MVP Kuest, who tied for medalist honors Tuesday with a 68, and Saint Mary’s-bound Hathcoat, Loosigian, Faragia and Stewart.

“Our team isn’t about one person leading the whole thing,” said Lagera, who has taken 15 Advanced Placement courses and will attend Cal only for academics, as will Stewart. “Us six guys (including Alexander Asmar) can come up clutch any time. That’s what it takes to be one of the best teams out there.”

Bakersfield Christian (422) won the Division II title Tuesday.

Clovis North and Clovis West, which won three of the past four D-I titles and 15 overall, advance to the Southern California Championships on May 26 at Brookside Golf Course in Pasadena.

Kuest, one of the state’s hottest junior golfers, will be the player to beat in the section Individual Championships on Monday at Taft’s Buena Vista Golf Course.

Ron Ramos, who has coached Clovis North since its inception, was confident the Broncos would break through this season a year after they lost to Clovis West by a stroke for the TRAC championship. And seniors Hathcoat, Stewart and Lagera, along with junior Loosigian, returned from that team.

“We knew we were on the doorstep,” Ramos said. “These guys are incredible students, quality character, and then they play pretty good golf, too. We’re very blessed with talent.”

This story was originally published May 17, 2016 at 8:22 PM with the headline "Prep boys golf: Justin Lagera leads Clovis North to first section title."