It was a bittersweet end to the season for Austin senior Luke Hoefflin at the Section 1AAA boys golf finals in Lakeville South Thursday.

Hoefflin clinched his first career trip to the Class ‘AAA’ golf meet, but he had to beat his friend to do it.

Hoefflin and fellow Austin senior Jordan Stasi were two of four golfers who went into a playoff to determine the final three spots for the state meet and Hoefflin advanced, while Stasi missed the cut.

“They’re best friends and it was tough for them to play against each other with a lot of pressure and a lot of people watching,” Austin head coach Will Pazurek said. “It’s just too bad both of them couldn’t make it.”

At the start of the day, the state meet was probably the farthest thing from both golfers’ minds. Hoefflin had to shoot a 75 and Stasi shot an even par 73 to force the playoff with four golfers who all had a two-day score of 155.

“It was a great performance on a tough course,” Pazurerk said. “Jordan knew he had to get a par or better and Luke knew he had to have a great day.”

Perhaps it was some good karma that carried Hoefflin to state. He called a penalty on himself for accidentally hitting his ball with a putter on hole No. 12 when no other golfers saw it. It cost him a stroke and forced him into the playoff.

“He thought it took him out of state when he finished, but I told him he did the right thing and it showed his integrity,” Pazurek said.

Austin senior Nick Tabor finished the meet with a two-day score of 159 and he shot a 78 on Thursday. He had two eagles on par fives and two birdies. Austin’s Mark Thorson missed the meet with an academic commitment.

For the Austin girls, senior Ingrid Baudler capped her season with a career best score when she shot a 92 at the section finals.

Baudler’s two-day score of 189 was not enough to get her to state, but she ended her golf career on a solid note.

“She really played well today and it’s a great way for her to end her career,” Austin head coach Erik LaRock said.

The Class ‘AAA’ state golf meet will be held June 15-June 17 in Coon Rapids, Minn.