Golf ends season on high note

Posted 9/21/21

In its final event of the season, the Powell High School golf team continued to improve, as the young squad posted its best round at the Class 3A state tournament in Lander last weekend.

Leading …

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Golf ends season on high note

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In its final event of the season, the Powell High School golf team continued to improve, as the young squad posted its best round at the Class 3A state tournament in Lander last weekend.

Leading the way for the Panthers — who finished 10th as a team — was Gunnar Erickson. The sophomore had only broken 90 once on the season until posting an 89 Friday and an 87 Saturday. 

“Gunnar had his best weekend as a Panther and it came at the perfect time for us,” coach Troy Hildebrand said.

The coach said Erickson was nearing all-state honors with four holes left, but had one tough hole that dropped him down. However, he rebounded on the last holes to post a career-best. Erickson ultimately ended in a tie for 16th to end the weekend with a total score of 176.

Hildebrand said that Erickson has just completed his first year of competitive golf, and believes he has a potential going forward that he is just beginning to scratch.

Andrew Jones, meanwhile, fired rounds of 95 and 91 over the two-day stretch.

“Andrew  [Jones] had a solid weekend and reaffirmed in his own mind that he really has a chance to be a very good player moving forward,” Hildebrand said.

The coach said better decision making on shots and not allowing a bad hole to get him down will allow for Jones to improve down the line. Jones finished in 27th overall for the tournament.

Trey Scott posted a score of 101 during the first day of competition and a 94 during the second day to earn an overall place of 38th.

Hildebrand said despite Scott being a freshman, he has done a great job hitting the ball the last two weeks. Playing a large amount of golf in the offseason and continuing to get bigger and stronger should make Scott a key contributor for years to come, Hildebrand said.

Isaiah Woyak posted a score of 111 during the first day of competition and a 102 the second day to finish in a tie for 57th overall for the weekend.

Woyak had an up and down season, the coach said, which aligned with his score over the state tournament.

He said one reason Woyak had a challenging season was due to his growth in stature, which can sometimes be a struggle for younger players, as it takes time for them to readjust their swing. Hildebrand said he expects Woyak to come back more technical next fall.

Seth Seibert was the final competitor for the state tournament team, posting scores of 109 and 124 and finishing 68th overall. 

Hildebrand said Seibert earned his spot on the state team with his play over the past six weeks. Despite an inability to get anything positive on Saturday, the coach said he believes Seibert will improve over the summer to make his senior year his best.

Hildebrand said his team was composed of three freshmen, 14 sophomores and two junior boys and expects all of them to return next fall.

On the girls side, senior Meg McDaniel was the only girl on the team this year, and did not compete in the state tournament. Hildebrand said he expects two or three girls to come in next year and will see if PHS has the opportunity to have a girls team in 2022.

Overall for the tournament, Parker Paxton of Riverton posted a 12-under for the weekend and helped the Wolverines win the overall title. Erika Cook of Lovell posted a 74 and 76 to take the girls’ individual title and Wheatland won the team title by two strokes over Green River.

Powell High School, Panther Golf

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