By By SCOTT NOVAK / Dowagiac Daily News
Lakeshore pulled into a first place tie with Niles in the Big 16 Conference West Division golf race Monday afternoon.
The Lancers shot 149 as a team to finish eight strokes ahead of Niles, which finished second with a 157.
St. Joseph finished third with a total of 161, while Dowagiac was fourth with a 164. Benton Harbor finished fifth with a 233.
The Vikings and Lancers are now tied atop the division with 18 points. St. Joseph is third with 12 points and Dowagiac fourth with eight points. Benton Harbor is fifth with four points.
Niles' Alex Welch was medalist on Monday with a 36.
The Vikings also got a 38 from Jeff Jurgonski, a 39 from Chris Haas and a 44 from Nick Horn. Scott Majerek finished with a 45 and D.J. Wolnick a 46.
Dowagiac was led by Nick Krizinski's 38.
Kevin Proshwitz shot a 40, while Mike Hoff shot a 42. Zack Russom finished with a 44, with Jared Schinske shooting 45. Richie Hutchinson shot a 47 to round out the scoring for the Chieftains.
The Lancers had three golfers with 37s, while C.J. Wright shot a 38. Shooting 37 were Tom Valha, Jeff Ott and Sam Bitterman.
The Chieftains return to the links on Wednesday when it faces host Edwardsburg, Coloma and Buchanan at Hampshire Country Club. The match start at 4 p.m.