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The Hill City Rangers boys golf team tied for sixth place after the first day of the Class B state tournament on Monday, putting them within striking distance of a top five finish.

The two-day tournament was held at the Brookings Country Club. After the opening round, the Wessington Springs team held a narrow lead at the top of the leaderboard.

The Hill City boys golf team is tied for 6th place after the first round of Monday’s Class “B” state golf tournament in Brookings.

Hill City had battled their way into the state competition by winning the Region 6B tournament for the second consecutive year last week. Some players on the Rangers squad have experience playing at the Brookings course from previous years.

Junior Leo Daiss and sophomore Zane Messick led the Hill City effort. Both golfers have qualified for the state tournament since middle school, giving them valuable experience playing under pressure.

“While we’re still competitors, we all have that fail safe in case one of us does bad we know another one can pick us up” Daiss said of the team's chemistry.

Head coach Josh Daiss praised the leadership shown by Daiss and Messick, as well as the practice resources provided by the Hart Ranch facility. He believes these advantages will help propel the Rangers higher up the standings.

“All the teams around here are young,” Josh said. “A lot of young good golfers in the region and in the state really. So, we’re looking obviously forward to having the same group next year, and then even after that we’ve got a young group coming up after that.”

“Around Region 6B it’s a lot tighter,” Leo said. “And then once you get into state there’s people that you recognize and people that you know.”

After an up-and-down first day, Messick said his goal for Tuesday was to stay focused on his individual performance rather than worrying about the big picture. Control what you can control was the theme.

“The biggest thing for me is just keeping it all focused and not getting...I look too much at the big picture and I worry about what if I don’t play well my team doesn’t do well,” Hill City sophomore Zane Messick said. “And I got to just tone in and think more about just what I need to do and not what everybody else is going on.”

The Rangers will be looking to make a move during the final round of stroke play. A top five state finish would cap off a strong season for the Hill City boys golf program.

References: https://www.kotatv.com/2024/06/04/hill-city-boys-golf-right-outside-top-5-state-tournament/

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