The Front Row with JASON ELLIOTT May 12, 2012

The level of competition is on the rise in the local 5A region.

Whether on the golf course or on the softball field, if you can make it here - then you've got a really good chance of making it down there as area teams hit the road to southern Idaho for state tournaments starting Monday.

COEUR d'ALENE qualified for another state 5A tournament after winning the Region 1 tournament with a 294 on Tuesday at Prairie Falls in Post Falls.

Post Falls, led by medalist Trevor Fedele, a sophomore who shot a 7-under 63, edged Lewiston to advance to state starting Monday at Pinecrest Golf Course in Idaho Falls.

"It's been a proud tradition for the nine years since I've been here," Coeur d'Alene coach Bryan Duncan said of qualifying for state. "These kids are golf rats and out here (Avondale Golf Club) all the time. They're an easy group to work with and with only one senior - our future looks bright."

After a bad front nine, senior Hunter Kraft had the thought cross his mind that the season might be over.

"There's always that thought in the back of your mind you won't make it," Kraft said. "But I always knew we'd come out on top. We held it together when it went bad and pulled it together to get it done as a team."

Michael Porter, a junior, played in the same group as Fedele at regionals.

"He was pretty much sticking every shot," said Porter of Fedele. "He's a pretty good player and could have gone even lower.

"Playing with someone like him makes me better," Porter added. "It makes me feel like you need to keep up with him and watch your shots a lot better."

LEWISTON FAILED to qualify for state after shooting a 304 - a score which normally would have been good enough to get the Bengals to state in previous years.

"That just showed the level of competition is going up," Duncan said. "Everyone is getting better and better."

Coeur d'Alene's last state championship team in 2004 shot a 297 and 299 at state - scores which would have put the Vikings on the fence for a state bid this year.

Currently, there is no set qualifying score for teams to shoot at regionals — instead, districts and regions go with a set amount of qualifying bids.

“There used to be one (qualifying score) when I started coaching at 315, but many thought it was too high because so many teams were qualifying because they’d move to easier courses to make the cut scores,” Duncan said.“I absolutely think if Lewiston qualified and shot the scores they did the other day, they’d probably place at state.”

Jason Elliott is a sports writer for the Coeur d’Alene Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at [email protected].