Carroll, Kapaun golfers join forces to top KC rivals to bring Catholic Cup home
Wichita’s two Catholic high school golf powers will be back to chasing each other soon enough.
For one weekend, though, Bishop Carroll and Kapaun Mt. Carmel were on the same side. And that was enough to bring the Catholic Cup back home.
The Wichita team, made up of golfers from Carroll and Kapaun, defeated the Kansas City team of St. James Academy and St. Thomas Aquinas, 12.5-8.5, this past Saturday at Emporia Municipal Golf Course in the ninth edition of the Ryder Cup-style competition between the four Catholic schools.
Kansas City had won the previous two years, but the two cups that go to the winning side will now spend the next year back in Wichita.
“It’s a lot of good golf, a lot of bragging rights and a lot of competition,” Carroll coach Mark Berger said.
The event has become one of the most unique dates on the Kansas high school golf calendar. The 27-hole competition begins with a scramble, shifts to alternate shot and finishes with singles matches, all while mixing teammates and rivals together before the postseason begins.
That is what makes the format so unusual. Carroll and Kapaun spend most of the season trying to beat each other. This time, the two sides had to work together.
“We’re used to competing against each other, but there’s a tremendous amount of respect and camaraderie between us,” Kapaun coach Jay Colliatie said. “They’ve got a great team and we hope we can go toe to toe with them and give them a run for their money, but for that weekend, it was really fun to see the boys have a great time together and get the cup back to Wichita.”
Wichita built its cushion early in the scramble portion, taking a 4.5-1.5 lead after the opening nine holes. The city’s top four pairings all won their matches, as Kapaun’s Carson Bachrodt and Carroll’s Max Farber won 2 up, Carroll’s Kaden Leivian and Kapaun’s Ben Wegeng won 4 and 3, Carroll’s Braeden Masterson and Kapaun’s Owen Young won 3 and 2, and Kapaun’s Ryker Dondlinger and Carroll’s Cohen Hageman won 2 and 1.
Kansas City made its push in alternate shot, trimming Wichita’s lead to 6.5-5.5 entering singles play.
That is where the Cup was ultimately decided.
Leivian, Carroll’s top player, was even entering the final hole of his singles match. Bachrodt, Kapaun’s top player, was one down entering the last hole of his match. Had both scores held, Kansas City would have sliced the deficit to 11-10 with three matches still on the course.
Instead, both Kansas City golfers three-putted the final hole, while Leivian and Bachrodt both two-putted. Leivian won the hole to secure a full point for Wichita, while Bachrodt rallied to square his match and earn a half-point.
That swing helped Wichita reach the 12.5-point threshold needed to clinch the Cup title.
Wegeng added one of the most memorable shots of the day when he buried a 30-foot putt on the final hole to win his singles match. Leivian, Masterson, Henry Mies, Wegeng and Young all won singles matches for Wichita, while Bachrodt and Farber each earned a half-point.
The Wichita roster included Carroll golfers Leivian, Masterson, Hageman, Farber, Jack Stephen and Quinten Mauler, along with Kapaun golfers Bachrodt, Wegeng, Dondlinger, Young, Mies and Greyson Wasinger.
It was a fitting showcase for some of the state’s best golf programs. Between the four schools, they have combined to win the last five Class 5A state championships with St. James winning in 2025, Kapaun in 2024, Carroll in 2023 and Kapaun in 2021 and 2022.
This year’s field also featured some of the best players in Kansas. Leivian carries a 71.1 scoring average, the best by a freshman in the state. Farber is also in the top 10 statewide at 71.9, while Bachrodt is in the top 20 at 73.7. Carroll owns the No. 1 team average in Class 5A, while St. James and Kapaun are also ranked in the top 10.
For one day, that made Wichita a united front.
Starting Wednesday, when Carroll and Kapaun meet again in the City League tournament at Sim Park, it will be something else entirely.
“It was very cool to see the kids come together and have a little camaraderie,” Berger said. “But now we’re back to being competitors, so starting Wednesday, it won’t be as friendly.”
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