Mule and Nygaard lead Pahrump at 3A state golf tournament

The Pahrump Valley boys golf team finished in fifth place at the 3A state boys golf championship this week at Toiyabe Golf Club.

Head coach Bob Hopkins and his defending southern regional champion Trojan golfers secured their spot in the 3A state tournament with their runner-up finish at this year’s 3A Southern regional tournament last week.

The two-day regional tournament was played at Pahrump Valley’s home course of Mountain Falls Golf Club.

Joey Mule led the team in the regionals with a two-round score of 176, good for a fifth-place finish based on the individual golfer’s scores. He shot a 16-over 88 in both of his rounds.

Carter Nygaard and Scott Oscarson were the only other Trojan golfers who finished in the top-10 in the tournament.

Nygaard ended his tournament tied for sixth place with a 177 and Oscarson finished in 10th place with a score of 184.

Nygaard’s second-round score of 82 was the best single-round score of any Pahrump Valley golfer and it was the third-best round in the tournament.

Top golfer Vincent Kyle Forbes of Legacy High had the two best single-round scores. He shot a 4-over 76 in the first round and an 8-over 80 in the second round for a tournament score of 12-over 156, winning by 18 strokes.

This was the second consecutive individual regional title for Forbes. He won last year’s southern regional tournament by 17 strokes.

The Trojans as a team finished with a total 2-round score of 731. Legacy High won the southern regional team title with a score of 710.

With their top-3 finishes, Legacy, Pahrump Valley and Boulder City all represented Southern Nevada in this week’s state tournament.

Forbes continued his hot start from the regional tournament with an individual title in the state tournament. He finished the two-round event with a 12-over 154.

Forbes cleared the rest of the field by seven strokes, with Fernley golfer Jacob Holmes finishing in second place with a 161.

The Pahrump Valley golfers didn’t have much success at the Washoe Valley golf course.

The team combined to finish in fifth place with a team score of 736, 38 strokes behind the 3A state champion Truckee Wolverines.

Nygaard led the Trojans with his 10th-place finish. He shot a 17-over 88 in both rounds of the state tournament to finish with a 176.

Mule and Oscarson were the only other Trojan golfers who finished in the top 20 spots.

Mule ended his tournament with a 182, while Oscarson finished right behind him after shooting a two-round score of 183.

Matt Lopez, Ryder Cordova and Dylan Avena also represented Pahrump Valley in the state tournament.

Lopez finished tied for 30th with two other golfers, finishing his tournament with a 195. He shot a 99 in the first round and a 96 in the second round.

Cordova finished in 41st place with his 211 after shooting a 111 in the first round and 100 in the second round.

Avena rounded out the Trojan golfers with his tournament score of 222. He shot a 109 in the first round and 113 in the second round.

Contact sports writer/editor Danny Smyth at dsmyth@pvtimes.com. Follow @_dannysmyth on Twitter.