The Ellinwood High School boys’ golf team finished their season at the Class 2A State Tournament, finishing fourth on Tuesday in Hays.  
The team qualified for the state tournament the previous week with a regional runner-up finish at Buffalo Dunes.  
The team has had a very strong season, especially in the latter half, when they placed second at the I-70 Classic, second at the Southeast of Saline Invitational and earned two tournament victories at the Ellsworth Invitational and the Central Prairie League tournament.
Jared Oelke played extremely well in the second half of the season.  
After winning the home tournament, he won both the Ellsworth Invitational and the Central Prairie League titles.  
The momentum the team built in these strong tournament performances throughout the season set up a dramatic state finish for the team.  
Oelke, a senior, put the team in a great position with his postseason career low 72 and individual state runner-up finish.  
Senior Ryley Ney and junior Gavin Vink both medaled with respective scores of 79 for 17 th and 80 for 18th place.   
The rest of the team combined with these three to score a season-low team score of 323, one stroke shy of the third-place trophy, and overall placing them in a tie for fourth and ultimate fifth-place finish.  
Oelke will continue his playing career after signing a letter of intent to play for Barton Community College next year.  
Ney will also be joining the BCC golf program.  
These two seniors have been instrumental in a four-year run of success and accomplishments by the EHS golf team.
Oelke finished his career as a four-time state qualifier and a 2013 third-place finish to compliment his runner up finish this year.  
Ney was a three-time state qualifier and medaled in the 2013 state tournament as well.
Team members this season were Oelke, Ney, Vink, sophomore Connor Ewing, sophomore Theron Sjogren and sophomore Matt Mettling.