An unexpected blowup Thursday by four South Whidbey golfers ended a season in which the Falcon boys seemed to have a chance to be contenders.

As it is, only sophomore Reed Dettrich will make a trip to the state meet next week, on a solo quest for a good placing. It was not what the team had planned on, especially after winning the North Cascade Conference meet a week earlier.

“It was more than disappointing,” said Falcon Coach Mick Heggenes.

At the Bellingham Golf and Country Club for last week’s Northwest District 2A meet, the Falcons found themselves dropping “from the penthouse to the outhouse” in Heggenes’ words, as all but Dettrich shot rounds of 90 or above. Though scores in the mid- to low-80s should have been the standard for the team, based on last year’s post-season play, Falcons Jeff Strong, Chuck Applebee, Kevin Carter and Bryce Hansen couldn’t keep their shot counts down. All finished well behind Dettrich’s state qualifying 84, and even further behind Mount Baker medalist Chance Lau, who finished the day with a two-over 74.

Heggenes said his team’s lack of familiarity with the course may have been one factor in the collapse. While a number of the northern teams at the meet play at Bellingham several times a year, the district meet was the Falcons’ first trip to the course.

The Falcons had hoped to better their sixth-place finish at the 2001 state golf meet. As it is, Dettrich will play as an individual when he travels to Sunnyside’s Black Rock Creek Golf Course next Monday.