ORANGE CITY — It was survival of the fittest in a Class 3A district golf meet here on Monday.

The Webster City boys proved their mettle and then some, braving the elements and punching a state tournament ticket at Landsmeer Golf Club.

Head coach Eric Dawson’s squad placed third, with MOC-Floyd Valley (308) taking the top spot and Spencer (326) placing second. The Lynx, who shot 330, were led by senior veteran Cael Nixon (78) and junior Dawson Bertran (80).

“We made sure we were taking the right attitude into this, given the conditions (with winds gusting near 40 miles an hour and temperatures in the mid-50s),” Dawson said. “We were well-prepared, not just with our clothing, gloves and stocking caps, but our mentality.

“All of the players were dealing with the same thing. I was really proud of the fact that we grinded our way through it and didn’t make excuses.”

Senior Cole Miller (84) and sophomore Coyce Bertran (88) had the other counting scores for Webster City, which is headed to state for the first time since 2022. Nixon was a freshman on that team.

“There was obviously a lot of tough competition out there (Monday),” Nixon said. “We were ready for the conditions and were able to execute our shots to keep the ball out of the wind.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what we can accomplish at the state tournament next week.”

Dawson had a general idea of what the Lynx needed to shoot, but the weather made the gameplan more about dealing with the elements accordingly than posting impressive numbers.

“I was talking to (assistant) Ben (Rasmussen) before the meet, and we decided anything in the 79-81 range would be a good score on a day like this,” Dawson said. “Cael and Dawson did a really nice job. Not just on the holes that went well, but minimizing the damage when they faced adversity. That’s as big as anything in a (postseason scenario) when the pressure is on.

“You have to show maturity and be able to navigate the bad while handling the good and moving on quickly from both.”

Junior Carter Mickelson (95) and senior Luke Firsching (95) rounded out the Lynx lineup.

“We’ve worked all year on punch shots and keeping the ball low, which has been a big factor this spring and typically is quite a bit,” Dawson said. “Just choking down and clubbing up to keep the ball out of the wind as much as possible.

“We were all just really happy after we found out we’d made it. Coming into the season, we had a mix of experienced guys and newcomers. We’ve had some surprises, but overall, this has been one of the funnest teams to be around. They have terrific attitudes, and we can’t wait to get to state. We have to remind ourselves that at the end of the day, it’s golf and you’re supposed to have fun out there. We’re not climbing mountains.”

The 3A state tournament is at Pheasant Ridge in Cedar Falls next Tuesday and Wednesday.