Memphis University School - Owl Yearbook (Memphis, TN)

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In the rematch with Briarcrest, Bob Boals smiles confidently as his final putt nears the cup. GOLF On the ninth fairway during the 85-stroke rout of Bartlett, Buddy Stimson addresses the ball in preparation for his second shot. With intense drive and determination, Courtnay Rudolph tees off in the Regional at Fox Meadows. GOLF 13

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sn During sudden-dea0p ti ' the Regionals, Bret Weaver shoots his way from the trouble of the trap, to the comfort of the green. GOLF 1976 (10-1) 319 Briarcrest 318 Weaver. Stimson 318 Auburndale 332 Stimson 302 Collierville 351 Stimson 303 Bartlett 388 • Weaver 293 Germantown 298 Weaver 318 Millington 334 Winkleman 312 Briarcrest 314 Rudolph 299 Harding 312 Weaver. Rudolph 1st Big Ten Tournament 1st District Tournament 1st Regional Tournament 2nd State Tournament THE 1976 GOLF TEAM: (front row) Bill Mace, Lee Nichols, Rob Preston, Courtnay Rudolph, Bret Weaver, Marshall Clark; (second row) Bruce Stein, Dan Brown, Bob Boals, John Atwood; (not pictured) Buddy Stimson, Willie Winkleman. Golf Team Has The Stroke Of Victory Bret Weaver Is 1st In State The 1976 Owl Golfers completed a rigorous schedule with an astounding 10-1 record, the only losses coming in the season opener to Briarcrest by only one point and their second place finish in the state tournament at Chapel Hill. The team ' s great season was also highlighted by individual honors. Bret Weaver won first place in the individual standings at the state tournament. This title recognized him as the finest high-school golfer in Tennessee, quite an achievement. Weaver, Rudolph, Stimson, and Winkleman all turned in medalist scores during the season. After the opening loss, the team won every remaining match in the regular season. Many of the wins were in hotly contested battles with the margin of victory being only two strokes, as in the rematch with Briarcrest on April 27, at Windyke. That score was MUS 312 to Briarcrest ' s 314. Other contests were not as close, like the 85-stroke (303- 388) victory over Bartlett on April 12, at Audubon. The top-four golfers were Weaver, Stimson, Rudolph, and Boals. All fired consistently low rounds and on several occasions came through with miraculous scores to insure the team ' s victory. In post-season play, the Owls ' performance was as tight as it was during the season. They drove in victories in the Big Ten, District, and Regional tournaments and finished second to Bristol in the State Championship. Bret Weaver was the medalist in the Big Ten victory on May 4, at Dyersburg. On May 6, the team upset CBHS to win the District Tournament at Galloway. Buddy Stimson earned medalist recognition. The Regional at Fox Meadows will go down in MUS golf history as the closest and most tense contest ever. At the end of regulation play, MUS and the old nemesis, Briarcrest, were tied. Sudden-death play-off was required to determine the champion. Amazingly, all eight golfers birdied the first hole and parred the second hole, leaving the score tied. MUS out-putted Briarcrest on the third play-off hole to win the Regional Tournament by a scant stroke. Coach Larry Shurlds was extremely pleased with the depth of his team which included: Marshall Clark, John Atwood, Dan Brown, Rob Preston, Bruce Stein, Lee Nichols, and Bill Mace. The only graduating player was Willie Winkleman. 12 SPORTS

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Varsity Runners Are Big Ten Champions Eight School Records Are Smashed By Four Relay Teams And Four Individuals The 1976 track team started its season with a decisive victory over Briarcrest, and a win in the MUS, Collierville, and Auburndale triangular meet. Neither meet gave the Owls much competition. Later, they confronted some tougher competitors and brought home second-place trophies from the Harding Invitational, Southwestern Invitational, and the East Memphis Classic. Tired of finishing second, they took first place in the Big Ten Championship. From there it was on to the District 12 meet, where, with phenomenal individual performances, they placed a strong third. Tommy Christenbury, Mark Porter, and Kyle Fisher went on to the state, coming home with a third, sixth, and twelfth, respectively, in their events. During the season many school records were broken. In the relays, Bill Mathieu, Ronnie Kirkpatrick, John Hammons, and Tiff Miller broke the 440-relay record with a time of :44.6. The 880-relay record was broken, with a time of 1:34.1, by Albert Ray, Conrad McCrary, Gib Wilson, and Hammons. A new mile-relay record of 3:26.0 was set by the team of Wilson, Mathieu, John Pitts, and Miller. And finally, the old 2-mile relay record was overturned by the quartet of John Wrenn, Pitts, Rene Bourgoyne, and Christenbury with a time of 8:06.1. There were also individual records set. Bill Mathieu now holds the school record in the 220 with a :22.5, and Mark Porter broke the mile run and 3-mile cross-country run with times of 4:26.2 and 15:37.0. Finally, there came the incredible achievement of Tommy Christenbury, who, with only a few weeks of practice, came home with 3rd in the state decathlon and broke the school record with 7,862 total points. The 1976 Varsity Track team fared well as a team as a result of record-breaking individual efforts and remarkable depth of talent throughout the entire roster. Coming out o his spin, Joey Schaeffer lunges forward with a burst of power to put the shot into flight. The 1976 track team was led by Gib Wilson, Kyle Fisher, Mark Porter, John Pitts, Bill Mathieu, and Tiff Miller. 14 SPORTS