Dealing with not so perfect weather conditions in the mountains, the golf team fought hard to come out victorious but lost the team competition and came in second place at the sixth Foothill conference match of the year hosted by Antelope Valley Community College.

College of the Deserts is the no. 1 ranked team in the Foothill Conference with an overall record of 59-5. EC is ranked second with a record of 28-18-1.

“There are some guys out here who really can go low like David Thomas,” James “JP” Harper said. “Erwyn is a good player and Ryan can put a score together but I don’t think any of us have come together in one match and shot our best.”

The standard for golfers is that 72 is par for the course. First year players James Harper and Erwyn Lam as well as second year player Ryan Saldana were individual medalists.

“We’re progressing fine this year,” Elliot Kim, second year player, said.

Harper finished tied for fourth place with College of the Deserts Austin Grey with a score of 75 or 3-over par.

“The season isn’t over yet. There’s still some time and we can do that,” Harper said.“There’s a lot of potential that EC could live up to and we haven’t really shown our true colors yet.”

Erwyn Lam was 5-over par which tied him with College of the Deserts Alfred Castro for sixth a score of 77.

“I didn’t play to my potential but I played alright,” Lam said. “When you’re up in the mountains the ball travels further than when you’re on sea level golf courses.”

Ryan Saldana was 6-over par with a score of 78 which tied with Antelope Valley’s Cameron Keene for place.

“They’ve met my expectations,” Stacy Komai, coach, said.

First year player David Thomas was 8-over par with a score of 80 but is still eligible for regional competition.

“Last week was a bad week but that’s golf,” Thomas said. “Stay focused and stay ready.”