STOCKTON — Turlock High senior Clark Van Gaalen fired a sizzling eight-under-par 64, while teammate Christian Maggard — the defending Sac-Sac-Joaquin Section Master champion — shot a two-under 70 to lead the Bulldogs to the overall title of the Central California Athletic League midseason tournament at The Reserve at Spanos Park.

Turlock took the title with a score of 375, followed by Gregori at 395, Pitman with 444, Enochs with 459, and Modesto with 625. Downey, which does not have enough golfers to filed a full squad, finished sixth.

Harry Clark and Aiden Salcedo shot matching 80’s for the Bulldogs, while Logan Bream carded an 81.

For the Pride, junior Roman Piro led the way with an 83, followed by sophomores Davis Cornell, who shot an 86, and Stephen Schmidt, who turned in a 90. Ethan Estacio also shot 90 for Pitman, while Noah Hobbs finished with a 95.

“That’s kind of been our mark all year, 375, 376, which is good, but we’re leaving strokes out there,” said Turlock coach Jason Boswell. “We can break 370, and if we break it at the right time, a lot of good things can happen. I’m very pleased with where we’re at.”

The section’s Division II tournament will be held May 6 at Turlock Golf and Country Club, while the section Masters tournament will be back at The Reserve on May 13.

In other words, things are setting up nicely for the Bulldogs.

“We’re setting ourselves up to be successful,” said Boswell. “And we’re trying to play our best golf at the right time.”

A day earlier, at the eighth annual Crosstown Cup three-player scramble, hosted by Turlock and Pitman high schools at TG&CC, Van Gaalen, Clark and Salcedo teamed to deliver the tournament’s low score — an 11-under 61.

Oakdale High’s trios fired matching 66s and took the team title with a 132.

Each team is comprised of six golfers, split into groups of three. Those trios are then paired up with a trio from another school to form a six-player grouping.

Turlock’s top three golfers were paired with Pitman’s top trio of Schmidt, Cornell and Piro. They carded a 70, which was the 11th best score among the 44 threesomes in the scramble.

“They’re definitely improving,” said Pitman head coach Matt Jeans. “We’re chasing Turlock and Gregori in league. The nice thing about this tournament is that it kind of creates a team-bonding aspect, which is something they really don’t get a chance to do at this level because they’re always playing their own game.”

Oakdale High, along with Gregori High, actually had two teams (12 total golfers) entered in the tournament. The Mustangs’ second squad fired a respectable 147, good for eighth place in the 22-team event.

The final team standings were: 1. Oakdale No. 1, 66/66–132; 2. Bret Harte 66/67–133; 3. St. Mary’s 64/72–136; 4. Turlock 61/77–138; 4. Gregori No. 1 67/71–138; 6. Ripon Christian 74/65–139; Buhach Colony 69/71–140; 8. Oakdale No. 2 75/72–147; 9. Hughson 73/75–148; 9. Ripon 66/82–148; 11. Enochs 71/83–154; 11. Gregori No. 2 83/71–154; 13. El Capitan 80/75–155; 13. Summerville 71/84–155; 15. Atwater 72/85–157; 16. Pitman 70/91–161; 16. Golden Valley 71/90–161; 18. Merced 88/87–175; 18. Livingston 86/89–175; 20. Modesto 89/91–180; 21. Sonora 90/95–185; 22. Hilmar 98/106–204.

After Van Gaalen, Clark and Salcedo, the top threesomes were from St. Mary’s (64) and Ripon Christian (65).