Michael Reitz failed to qualify for the state golf tournament last year.

But that never deterred the senior from Denver Christian. In fact, that shortcoming only invigorated Reitz, and his year of dutiful hard work paid off Monday.

Fighting through a cool, howling wind at Spring Valley Golf Course, Reitz used a strong performance on the greens to fire a 2-over-par 74.

He will be one of several players chasing first-round leader Minkyu Jeon of Front Range Christian when the final round of the inaugural Class 3A event begins at 8:30 a.m. today.

Trailing Jeon and Reitz are two players who carded a 3-over 75 - Clark Reidberger of Pagosa Springs and Andrew Cornella of St. Mary's Academy - and five players tied at 4-over 76.

Kent Denver, which won the past two 4A tournaments, ended the first round atop the team standings at 239, five shots ahead of Estes Park and 10 ahead of third-place Gunnison.

"I putted very well. My driving was pretty good until the end, but putting saved me (Monday),"

Reitz said.

"I've been working so hard. I work at Kennedy Golf Course, and I play every day and hit balls. It's just good to see that all my hard work is paying off."

Jeon, aiming to become the first individual titlist in golf's new 3A classification, was the only player to reach par in the blustery conditions that drove up scores.

After starting his round on the 10th hole, Reitz credited a birdie on his 13th hole for allowing him to bounce back from a double bogey he suffered on his eighth hole.

"It was pretty tough out there. The wind was pretty tough to judge," said Kent Denver sophomore Jason Lehigh, the Sun Devils' top finisher and one of the five players tied at 76.

"There were a lot of distance issues, but putting really saved me. I was sinking a lot of 5- to 10-footers. I had my irons going pretty well. My drivers were a little shaky, but I made it up with my short game."

Holy Family was expected to challenge league rival Kent Denver, which the Tigers beat in the final league tournament of the regular season, in the team race.

But Holy Family's top two players, Will Roth and Austin Lucero, suffered through what Tigers coach Will Wilson termed as "their worst rounds of the season," dropping the Tigers to sixth place.

"The (team title) is all we've really focused on this season," Lehigh said.

"If someone on our team wins the individual title, it would just be a bonus. We've just been trying to work hard and get that third title. We're trying to play the best we can and hope that is good enough."