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Depth, skill lead Eagle Valley to seventh place finish

Ian Smith
Vail, CO Colorado

MONTROSE ” Eagle Valley golf coach Tom Buzbee has a problem, but don’t feel bad for him. His team is loaded with players capable of filling the five-man varsity roster.

The Devils have 20 golfers, many of whom are qualified to play at the varsity level.

On Wednesday, Eagle Valley’s black team ” the Devils’ top squad ” stayed in Gypsum to give other players a chance to play. The new kids made the most of the opportunity.



Eagle Valley’s red team finished in seventh place with 251 strokes at The Bridges in Montrose. Cortez won the event with 227 strokes. The Devils’ white team placed second among JV squads with a 265.

One of the newcomers who excelled was Dustin Arguello. He paced Eagle Valley on Wednesday with a 79. Arguello was called up to the red team for the tournament.

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“Once I did really well on the first hole, I didn’t really think about anything else,” Arguello said. “I just kept playing good. It felt really good to shoot well and have a really good score. It has never happened before to me.”

The key to Arguello’s success was avoiding trouble. The Bridges in Montrose features water on 15 holes. For the most part, Arguello stayed dry.

“Dustin was very consistent ” no big numbers,” Buzbee said. “He avoided that one hole that’s going to kill you. He stayed out of it.”

Another new addition to the red squad also did well. Evan Buzbee fired an 85, one better than the 86 he posted at Battlement Mesa last week.

Taylor Sanchez finished with an 87 for the Devils. Alec Sterkel had a 95 and Kevin Stough a 101.

The Eagle Valley white team fared well in its first action of the season. The Devils finished second among JV teams with 265 strokes, only behind Montrose.

Nick Bontempo shot a 82 to lead the white squad in the first meet of his career. Derek Kaspar ” also playing at the high school level for the first time ” finished with an 89.

“Nick Bontempo was a late addition to the team,” Tom Buzbee said. “He didn’t do so well in tryouts, but he promised me he was going to play better. Derek Kaspar didn’t make the team last year, and now he’s come back.”

Jalen Aquino carded a 94 for the white team. Stuart Rasmussen finished with a 95 and Cooper Senn had a 99.

Buzbee wanted to test his red and white teams on Wednesday, while giving a short break to varsity regulars.

“I wanted the golf course to bite them a little,” Buzbee said. “They played control golf for the most part. As you can see, there were two, three on the red that did it well. The white team did OK, too.”

Eagle Valley takes the course again next Wednesday with the regular black squad at Eagle-Vail. Next Thursday, the Devils host their own tournament at Cotton Ranch.

Sports writer Ian Smith can be reach at 970-748-2935 or ismith@vaildaily.com.


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