By Mike Maltais
Liberty Bell High School senior Riley Dickinson shot a final round of 80 to place fifth in the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association 1B/2B State Golf Championships played at Oakbrook Golf Course in Lakewood last Wednesday and Thursday (May 28-29).
Dickinson moved up from 10th spot from the previous day’s play, when he had shot an 86 to finish among the top 20 players who made the cut to finals.
Dickinson’s route to state was an innovative one. Since Liberty Bell does not currently field a varsity soccer team, Dickinson had to find a school with a varsity golf team that was willing to put him on its roster so he could compete at district, a requisite for state qualification.
The Manson High School varsity golf team, coached by Ryan Allstot, agreed to add Dickinson to the team at districts and the Mountain Lion rewarded them by winning the competition by eight strokes.
At state Dickinson was allowed to compete on behalf of Liberty Bell and had help from father, Pete, who acted as his coach.
“He helps me a lot with my mental game,” Dickinson said of his father.
At Oakbrook, Dickinson found both the caliber of the course and his opponents impressive.
“I was having a little trouble keeping my drives on the fairway,” Dickinson said of the course but managed well enough to move up five places in the final round.
