Servite Outduels Santa Margarita in Serra League Battle

It was the match they had been talking about since the golf season began, so it’s no surprise that the play started shaky when top-ranked Santa Margarita met No. 2 Servite Wednesday at Coto de Caza’s North course.

The stakes were high. These are two of the top teams in the Southern Section and the winner would gain the upper hand in the Serra League race.

Servite, using a conservative and consistent approach, edged the Eagles, 188-190, in nerve-racking, tension-filled match.

How tense was it?

Nico Bollini of Servite, one of the top players in the nation, bogeyed three of the first four holes. Santa Margarita’s Steve Conway, who has signed with UCLA, failed to make a birdie in a match for the first time this season.

Servite’s Ryan Cole, who started with six consecutive pars and shot one-over-par 37, summed it up best.

“Every stroke had a lot weighing on it,” he said. “I knew it would be close so I just wanted to keep the big numbers out of play.

Bollini recovered from his poor start with birdies on three of the final five holes and matched Cole’s 37. Ryan Heidorn also shot 37 for the Friars. Ryan Carter shot 38 and R.J. Nones had a 39.

“After that start I was like, ‘Jeez what kind of course is this?’ ” Bollini said. “But I managed to come back. It wasn’t great, but it was enough.”

Santa Margarita, which regularly has been breaking 180 in recent weeks, was inconsistent throughout. Junior Dave Hawkins was medalist with a 34, but nobody else shot better than Conway’s 38.

Servite (6-1, 3-0) had been struggling in the last few weeks, losing a match to Calabasas and needing a playoff to defeat Esperanza. Those struggles did not go unnoticed by Santa Margarita (11-1, 2-1).

“I don’t think our team totally respected Servite,” Eagle Coach Tim O’Hara said. “We were a little overconfident. Nobody has really been close to us with our top six playing, so they thought they could just show up anywhere at any time and beat anyone.”

The teams meet three more times this season, not including the anticipated playoff matchups. Both are playing in the Sacramento Jesuit tournament this weekend, they have another league match April 20 and meet in a three-way match with Santa Barbara San Marcos April 24.

“We will not be too confident because of this,” Servite Coach Tim Meagher said. “I’ll make sure of that.”