The 2023 PCHS Cougar golf team is (front, from left) Hunter Johnson, Landyn Hughes, Ethan Worley, Connor Whitaker, Kaleb Sartin, and Jackson Akers. Back: Coach Mark Hanks, Thatcher Singleton, Johnny Anderson, Keaton Jones, and Boone Blevins.
The Pulaski County High School golf team put in a lot of work this season, despite having a mostly young squad that included several players in their first year on the team. Despite those obstacles, the team continued to show improvement throughout the season.
At the River Ridge District tournament, the Cougars finished with a total team score of 366. Blacksburg took first, as expected, with a score of 283. Hidden Valley was second at 313 and Cave Spring was third at 315. Salem took fourth with a 325.
Individually for the Cougars, Thatcher Singleton took top honors with an 87. Boone Blevins took second with a score of 91. Johnny Anderson took third with a 93. Keaton Jones was fourth with a 95.
The River Ridge District Player of the Year was Kathryn Ha of Salem. Blacksburg was crowned district champions. The top medalist in the RRD went to two players, Pierce Campbell of Blacksburg and Nate Faulkner of Cave Spring, who each finished the day with a score of 69.
Next up for the Cougars was the Class 3, Region D tournament, held at the Draper Valley Golf Club. The Pulaski County golfers finished the day with an improved score of 358 as a team. Individually, the Cougars saw Singleton again take the top honors with a score of 82, improving his score by five points. Jones earned a score of 91. Anderson finished the day with a 91 also. Blevins finished with a 94.
Abingdon took top honors with a total team score of 294 to earn the Region Championship, their sixth title since 2014 and fourth in a row. Hidden Valley took second with a 297. Those two teams will now advance to the State Championship tournament, set for October 9 at the Williamsburg National Golf Course.
The top three individual golfers will also automatically advance to the State Tournament. Those include Christiansburg golfer Josh Cummins (69), Cave Spring golfer Nate Faulkner (71), and Magna Vista golfer Logan Williams (73). Had Hidden Valley not earned the team entry to the tournament, Richard Hearp of the Titans would have earned a spot with his score of 69, eliminating Williams.
The Cougars showed improvement through the season, with final stroke averages that leave Head Coach Mark Hanks excited for the future. Singleton finished with an average score of 83.5. Jones had a 90.8 average. Anderson finished with an average of 93.3. Blevins improved his average to a 94.7. Ethan Worley finished the season with an average of 93.8 in five matches. Kalib Sartin earned an average of 97.6 in five matches. Connor Whitaker had an average of 101.
With a small group of players that will move up from an undefeated Pulaski County Middle School team next year, the program will expect great things in the future.