The Warrenton boys golf team started their season a little differently this year. 

To see where they stack up in conference, the Warriors faced St. Charles West, the four-time GAC North conference champions, in a home dual match on March 27. 

Warrenton finished with a score of 173, while St. Charles West claimed first place with a score of 146.

Regardless of the score, Coach Aaron Jinkerson was optimistic about his team’s potential to achieve great things this season following the match. 

“St. Charles West has a good team this year, but I thought we were able to come out on our first match with some expectations on how the rest of the year will go,” Jinkerson said. “It’s always about getting experience and seeing how you can compete against a good team like that, and building towards improving every day and every competition.”  

St. Charles West claimed the top three individual finishes, with Owen Shy shooting a 33, Jace Little finishing with an even 35 and Hudson Shy posting a 36. For Warrenton, Ethan Leavitt (40) and Gavin Thompson (41) placed fourth and fifth, respectively. 

Also for the Warriors, Gavin Solari (45) finished eighth, Eli Peth (47) placed ninth and freshman Luke Bolm (48) came in 10th. 

Jinkerson was overall pleased with the team’s first performance of the year and noted the individual improvements, something they are constantly striving for. 

He also said this was a beneficial experience for the Warriors before they headed into their first tournament– the Bogey Hills Invitational, which was played on March 31. 

“I am very happy with the five varsity scores, whether it was Leavitt– he played really, really well on Tuesday and I know he was happy– or both the Gavins (Thompson and Solari) and (Peth) and (Bolm) got some valuable experience,” Jinkerson said. 

Bolm was the No. 5 golfer for the Warriors and played in his first varsity match. 

“He’s a very coachable kid who wants to learn, which is a big part of any sport but especially golf,” Jinkerson said. 

Even though the Warriors began their season with a loss, Jinkerson saw the match as a positive start to their season. 

“They’re a pretty competitive group already,” he said. “We just have to make sure we’re challenging them every day and we give them goals and focuses to attain.” 

Warrenton will play its next match against Holt at 3:30 p.m. on April 3 at Warrenton Golf Course.