Panther, Lady Panther golfers looking to improve on strong spring

Teams open season Thursday at Powell/Cody Invitational

Posted 8/15/19

It will be a quick turnaround for the Powell High School golf teams this season; with just three team practices under their belt, the Panthers and Lady Panthers will take to the course today …

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Panther, Lady Panther golfers looking to improve on strong spring

Teams open season Thursday at Powell/Cody Invitational

Posted

It will be a quick turnaround for the Powell High School golf teams this season; with just three team practices under their belt, the Panthers and Lady Panthers will take to the course today (Thursday) for the season-opening Powell/Cody Invitational.

Head coach Troy Hildebrand will have plenty of golfers to choose from on the boys’ side, with 11 golfers out for the team this season. For the Lady Panthers, unfortunately, attrition has taken a toll.

“We had three junior girls last year that were going to be coming back as seniors, but a couple of them moved over the summer,” said PHS head coach Troy Hildebrand. “So in terms of experience, Mycah Wainscott is at the top for us. She’s definitely someone who’s worked hard on her game since she joined us three years ago. She’s taken lessons and done a lot of things to help her game, so I expect her to have a really good season.”

Wainscott earned All-Conference and All-State honors last year as a junior, and Hildebrand said he’s excited for her senior season.

“We’re a little disappointed not to have all three of those girls with us, but it is exciting to have someone who’s earned those honors coming back for another season,” Hildebrand said. “The state tournament is in Afton this year, which is where conference was last year. That gave all of these kids a good look at that course including Mycah, so those are all positives on that side.”

Lady Panther freshman Jasmine Simonson will also look to log some tournament time for Hildebrand.

“... It’s nice to have her come in as a freshman and at least have a chance to be around an experienced player like Mycah [Wainscott] and learn a few things she can use moving forward,” the coach said of Simonson.

On the boys’ side, Hildebrand will look to senior and four-year varsity golfer Crandell Sanders to lead by example. Sanders was named All-Conference as a junior, and his coach expects big things in this, his final season.

“Crandell has always worked hard on his game, so I expect his senior season to be a pretty positive one in terms of results and leadership for us,” Hildebrand said.

Junior George Higgins came on strong at the end of last season, impressing Hildebrand with his work ethic. Higgins has only been playing golf for a few years, but spends countless hours on the course to continually improve his game.

“George plays more than anyone on the team by a long ways,” Hildebrand said. “He plays practically every day, and has gone from having never played golf two years ago to consistently shooting around 75 right now. He’s got himself positioned to have a really good season and move into that leadership role for us for those younger guys to see what that looks like.”

Fellow junior Yogi Sullivan struggled to find his groove last fall, but rebounded with a few solid tournaments this past spring.

“Yogi will be working his way into the varsity lineup more consistently to start the season,” Hildebrand said.

As for the younger players, sophomore Brandon Wentz made great strides last year as a freshman, according to Hildebrand. He thinks Wentz — who’s on the varsity squad this week — could play an important part on the team.

“He has a great attitude and seems to really want to get better all the time,” the coach said of Wentz.

Junior Jacob Thiel, who got a little bit of tournament experience last spring, will also be on the varsity roster this week.

“Hopefully Jacob can build off some of the experience he gained in the spring,” Hildebrand said.

Hildebrand’s freshman players include Steven Stambaugh, who will play in the Powell/Cody Invite. Hildebrand said the young golfer has shown a good knowledge of the game, though he doesn’t have a lot of tournament experience.

“Steven has definitely shown, just in the couple of days we’ve practiced, that he has the ability to step in and help us out right away,” Hildebrand said. “That’s great to have that as a freshman; it’s always nice to get help from those lower grades.”

Other first-year players Hildebrand hopes will make an impact over the course of the season include junior Trevor Groves. Groves is new to golf but has played quite a few other sports.

“Trevor is a pretty good athlete all around, and he played some golf this summer to get himself a feel for the game,” Hildebrand said. “He seems like someone who can pick it up fairly quickly. He won’t play this week, but he’s someone I think with a little experience will do well for us down the line.”

Freshmen Seth Siebert and Sam Hallman join the team with a little bit of golf experience under their belt, and seem committed to working hard and figuring out how the high school game works, according to Hildebrand.

“Those are definitely two players who will get some experience this year, and will be guys we’ll be looking to build around in the future,” he said.

The Powell teams will tee off at the Powell Golf Club at 1 p.m. today (Thursday), while the action heads to Cody’s Olive Glenn Country Club on Friday.

It will mark the first tournament experience for a few of the Panthers, and Hildebrand said the lessons learned will be valuable. For older players like Sanders and Higgins, it will be an opportunity to see how they stack up against some of the best golfers in the state.

“This is probably one of the biggest tournaments in the state: We have 13 teams coming, and that includes both Casper schools, both Gillette schools and Sheridan,” Hildebrand said. “It’s going to be a really big event, so they’ll see some really good competition. [Sanders and Higgins] will be able to assess themselves against a quality field, while some of the newer players will just be working to get their feet underneath them and get more comfortable in that setting.”

And with just six weeks until the state tournament in Afton, every bit of experience counts.

Powell High School, Panther Golf

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