Golf coaches Ron Commons and Jack Schreiner are telling their respective teams the same things these days.

“We’re progressing nicely and improving.”

“This is the best golf we’ve played all season and it’s at the right time.”

Those kind of player-building statements would be true if they passed across the lips of either coach, but each coach’s intention might be a bit different.

Commons’ Lawrence High squad is one of the better teams in the Sunflower League, while Schreiner’s youthful Free State High team  it has no seniors  has been suffering from growing pains.

The gap between the two schools was exposed Wednesday at Lawrence High’s 25-team Lawrence Invitational at Alvamar.

Overland Park Aquinas’ Gary Woodland won the event after he birdied three of the first four holes and finished with a score of 67.

Junior Thomas Fulbright led Lawrence with a 75, and sophomore Andy Frye topped Free State with an 82.

Aquinas placed first in the team competition with a four-player total of 302. Olathe North finished second (306), Olathe East took third (306) and Lawrence was fourth (309).

“I thought we’d finish high in the tournament,” Commons said. “I was surprised with how well Olathe North did. That really will tighten up the league race.”

Commons said he thought his players might have been a little disappointed with their scores, but said that every golfer thinks he is “at least one or two strokes better at this time of the year.”

Lawrence’s coach also said the Lions “are peaking at the right time of the year” and should do well in regionals Monday at Eagle Bend.

The Firebirds finished 18th with a team score of 338, but strokes have been steadily falling off Free State’s scores all season.

“We shot really well, but the tournament is so strong that we got hammered,” Schreiner said. “That’s one of the better rounds we’ve shot, but everybody is good so we finished where we did. The kids did good and we’re getting better every week.”

Team scoring: Aquinas 302, Olathe North 306, Olathe East 306, Lawrence 309, SM Northwest 309, BV West 309, BV Northwest 313, SM East 315, Washburn Rural 316, BV North 320, Shawnee Heights 322, Junction City 332, Blue Valley 333, Olathe South 333, SM South 334, Miege 334, Topeka Seaman 337, Free State 338, Manhattan 340, Topeka West 341, SM West 351, Leavenworth 359, SM North 377, Topeka High 393, Mill Valley 394.

Medalist: 1. Gary Woodland, Shawnee Heights 67. 2. Mike Schnegeleerger, Aquinas, 71. 3. Zach Pederson, BV West, 73. 4. Joel Hiatt, Olathe South, 73. 5. Geoff Danker, Olathe North, 74. 6. Michael Shoaf, SM East, 74. 7. Tom Clifford, OP Aquinas, 75. 8. James Delahanty, Olathe East, 75. 9. Cole Chmielewski, SM Northwest, 75. 10. Chris Mabry, SM Miege, 75.

LHS results: Thomas Fulbright, 75; Cameron Flanders, 78; Spencer Wilson 76; Nathanial Spencer 80; Zach Blevins, 81; Jon Mosley 83.

FSHS results: Andy Frye, 82; Tyler Yeakel, 85; Aaron Webber, 85; Jason O’Bryon, 86; Stephen Skepnek, 87; Matt Baker, 96.