Kihei Charter sophomore Lakota Lee finished fourth at the Hawaii High School Athletic Association Boys Golf Championships on May 13-14. Courtesy photo

After finishing fourth at the Hawaii High School Athlete Association Boys Golf Championship on May 12-13 at Kaneohe Klipper Golf Course, Lakota Lee is looking forward to next year.

The sophomore from Kihei Charter shot a combined score of 150 at the two-day tournament and tied for third with St. Joseph’s Leo Saito, who shot 74 on the first day and 76 on the second. Lee was awarded fourth place overall after a tie-breaker.

“Looking back on (shooting three-over par both days), it’s always good no matter what kind of field you’re in, but especially in the state championships,” he said. “But I was right in it going into the last few holes, and it was kind of just disappointing the way I finished. But I’m only a sophomore, so I still have two more years.”

On the first day, Lee birdied the No. 3 hole. He had four bogies and ended the day at 75 shots, putting him just three off the lead going into day two.

On the second day, Lee made par on the first through the eighth holes. He birdied the ninth and the 17th holes, though Lee recorded bogies on Nos. 12, 13, 14, 15 and 18 to finish three shots behind state champion Bret Kiyuna of Punahou.

“It wasn’t really anything crazy, just a few bad bounces and a few pushes didn’t drop. That’s just how golf is sometimes,” Lee said.

Quade Martinez of Kalaheo finished second, and Punahou won the team championship.

Other top finishes from Maui County came from Owen Hegrenes of Lahainaluna, who shot 80 on the first day and 85 on the second to finish 38th overall. Baldwin’s Rylan Siverly was one stroke back at 166 and took 41st place.

River Krause (166, 42nd) and Makela Rutherford-Storm (167, 48th) posted the top results for the boys from Kamehameha Maui. Close behind was Maui High’s Landon Oshita (168, 50th), Kamehameha Maui’s Kahiau Ting (168, 51st) and Maui Prep’s Aaron Hall (169, 53rd).

As a team, the Baldwin boys finished eighth overall. Liam Lopez (61st, 171), Tyce Keene (172, 63rd), Jayce Soberano (182, 84th) and Raiden Okita (192, 92nd) rounded out the Bears boys golfers.

While a state title didn’t come to fruition this year, Lee said he believes next year will see the return of an even stronger boys golf team from Kihei Charter, which is exciting after the young program reached new heights this year.

“I think next year we got a great chance,” Lee said as he talked about their team chemistry and work ethic.

For Lee, it was an honor to represent his school and his community at the state golf tournament, helping to bring more recognition across Hawaii to Kihei Charter.

“I’ve been here since sixth grade, so I’ve always been excited to represent Key Charter, especially with golf,” he said. “Winning (the Maui Interscholastic League title), and placing top five in states this year, and then top 10 in states last year was nice. I think our athletic program is really good, and I think we’re just gonna look even better for next year — and definitely my senior year.”