Hillcrest boys golf makes it to state

Hillcrest boy’s golf accomplished something amazing this year. Not only did they qualify for the state tournament, but the entire varsity team qualified to go to state on Oct. 3-4, at Hobble Creek Golf Course. Although the team didn’t place in the top 10, senior Seokwon Jeon took a second place medal, ending a great season.

“Hillcrest hasn’t had a major presence at the state golf tournament for a long time,” coach Dave Richardson said. “We usually send a player or two, but to qualify the entire team was a great thing this year.”

Finishing second in Region 7 was a big improvement over last year’s last place finish. The combination of a new coach, seasoned returning varsity golfers and younger talent was the right mix to reach the team’s goal of competing for a state title.

Led by seniors Seokwan Jeon, Bridger Freeman, Taggert Butler, and Mike Wilkinson, Hillcrest had experienced players to turn in low scores and help younger players. Jeon was Hillcrest’s lone representative at last year’s state tournament. At that time, he didn’t crack the top 10 individual scores. This year, Jeon stayed neck and neck with the first place finisher, Peyton Hastings from Woods Cross. Hastings beat Jeon by two strokes.

Jeon has been the most consistent player this season and has turned in low scores at every tournament. He shot a 63 during the tournament at Glendale Golf Course and was nine under par. His scores have averaged about 71.4, which put him as the number one low scorer in Region 7.

“Seokwan is one of the big reasons we did so well in region this year,” Richardson said. “Not only is he a great golfer, but he’s also a great teacher. He helped his teammates a lot this season and that coming together as a team really made a difference.”

Although Richardson will be graduating most of his varsity team this year, that doesn’t leave him empty handed for next year. Junior Brian Adams participated in state this year, as did sophomore Mason Millar. Adams had the most consistent play during the state tournament, Richardson said. Trey Wright and Spencer Warren are also younger players that did well this year.

“I’m already looking forward to next year,” he said. “Although we’re losing four seniors, we still have a strong team with lots of depth and experience.”

Richardson is already making plans for next season and said he’s going to work with the boys again in the spring – getting together once a week to play. It will give the boys a chance to play more often and start working on their skills during the off season.

“Our finish this year has helped this team a lot already,” Richardson said. “Our team is getting a lot of buzz around the school and more guys have approached me about joining next year. We’re going to miss our seniors but hopefully their confidence will be passed down to the younger players.”