By Kazi Nassif

Coming off of a 5th place finish at the District Championship Preview, the varsity boys’ golf team traveled to Mesquite to take part in the District 10-6A Championship.

The boys’ varsity team finished fourth overall as a team, an improvement Senior Reagan Smith attributes to the joint team effort throughout the tournament. Smith finished 12th individually.

“We really rallied together, united by a common goal, which was cool to see,” said Smith. “We performed well and gave our district opponents a scare, showing that we were a threat.”

Juniors Keith Fleming and Logan Smith are the only players who will return as seniors for the 2016-17 season. Fleming thought that the difficult wind conditions at Mesquite Municipal Golf Course gave him a good learning experience for future tournaments in tough conditions.

“We had winds blowing upwards of twenty miles an hour which was really tough to compete in,” Fleming said. Despite the harsh weather, Fleming finished fourth in the district, placing the highest on the team.

Fleming said that this tournament was especially impressive considering the team’s collaborative mindset throughout the competition.

“What stood out to me was how well we supported each other,” Fleming said. “We said uplifting things as we passed each other on different holes. The team dynamics were great.”

Fleming said he plans on improving his consistency from tournament to tournament, but is confident in the mechanics of his game.

“I have all the shots and can play well,” Fleming said. “I just need to stay consistent, and I struggled with that a bit this year.”

Looking back at the span of the golf season, Head Coach Lyndal Weaver said he thought that the best overall performance for the team was in 2015 at the Tenison Golf Course. He felt that the team played hard and kept their focus throughout the competition.

“We played our best tournament of the year,” Weaver said. “The team was more focused and determined.”

Weaver is confident in the team and plans on working with the players individually to increase their chances of making regionals next year.

“Next year we have several players that will be outstanding, such as Keith Fleming and Logan Smith,” Weaver said. “We plan to develop some of our young talent to compete fora regional spot in 2016-17.”

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Fleming is keeping an optimistic outlook for next season, even with the daunting task of replacing seven seniors who graduate this spring.

“It’ll be tough next season losing seven seniors, but I think we’ll pull through for another good season,” Fleming said.