The short trip to Cody paid off for the Powell High School golf teams, as the Panther girls battled through windy conditions over both days of the conference tournament to a third place finish.

The boys finished fourth in a tightly contested battle for the top three at the Olive Glenn Golf Club on Thursday and Friday.

Coy Erickson led the girls, finishing third overall with scores of 98 and 96 to finish just one stroke outside of a playoff for the conference title.

“Coy played very steady in the tough conditions and finished a single stroke out of a playoff for the conference championship,” coach Troy Hildebrand said. “She has been getting better every week and gaining confidence in each tournament so it was great to see her competing at the top of the leaderboard this week.”

Just behind Erickson in sixth was Emery Hernandez, who turned in rounds of 105 and 101.

“Emery was consistent both days and while she didn’t feel like this was her best golf, she still hung in there to post two solid rounds in these conditions and earn All-Conference honors,” Hildebrand said.

Third for the Panther girls was Maddie Croft, who turned in rounds of 128 and 131 to finish 15th.

“Maddie is seeing a new course every week and she has done an excellent job this fall of taking it all in and making great strides in her game,” Hildebrand said. “Having the opportunity to compete at state next week as a freshman will really help her for next year as she continues to grow as a player.”

The Panther boys were led by Cody Fisher, who finished with rounds of 81 and 83 to finish sixth.

“Cody was very consistent and steady in his two rounds and did a great job of minimizing the damage from tough holes by bouncing back with pars,” Hildebrand said. “He was a solid player last year as a freshman but his growth this year is remarkable and the consistency of his play all fall has been something that we could really count on as a team.”

Second for the Panthers was Trey Scott, who recorded rounds of 82 and 88 to finish eighth.

“Trey has truly grown into a leader for this group and with all of the time and work that he has put into golf over the last four years it was nice for him to earn All-Conference as a senior,” Hildebrand said.

Jackson Hill was the third Panther, recording scores of 87 and 100 to tie for 19th.

“Jackson was right there after Thursday but he had a very difficult back nine on Friday and just wasn’t able to keep the round on track,” Hildebrand said.

Park Harvison was the fourth Panther, shooting scores of 90 and 99 to finish 22nd.

“Park continues to grow as a player as he gets more experience on new courses each week and I’m very pleased with the scores he has been able to shoot in his first year with us,” Hildebrand said.

Locking up the fifth spot for the Panthers heading into state was Jace Harris, who shot rounds of 104 and 111 to finish 36th.

“Jace has played some very good golf in every round he has played this fall. Unfortunately he has had a three to five hold stretch that has really elevated his scores,” Hildebrand said.

The sixth Panther competing at conference was Julian Frost, who posted scores of 131 and 148 to finish 44th.

“Julian joined us this year as a senior for the fall and was in a battle for our fifth and final spot at state heading into conference. He had a good season but fell short in these final two rounds,” Hildebrand said.

On the girls’ side, Keigann Watson of Lander defeated Eliana Hopkin of Cody in a playoff after both shot 193, while Jermaine Broussard of Worland defeated Carson Krebes of Cody in a playoff after both shot 161.

The Powell girls finished with a score of 659, ahead of Worland in fourth with 794, but behind Lander with 611 and Cody with 608.

Lander ran away with the boys title with a 653, while Worland finished second with 696, Cody was third with 707 and the Panthers were fourth with 710.

“We had said before the tournament that it would be a battle for second behind Lander and that was definitely the case after day one as it was Worland at 338, us at 340 and Cody at 341,” Hilderband said. “Day two was tough across the board but I felt like we could have done a better job of handling the elements and posting a team total that would have gotten us second or third … Hopefully we can learn something from this and put together two complete days in Rawlins and be in that mix for a top five finish.”

STATE TOURNAMENT

The quickest season of the fall is set to wrap up this weekend, as the Panthers will head down to Rawlins to take part in the 3A State Tournament at the Rochelle Ranch.

“We head to a very unfamiliar course in Rochelle Ranch,” Hildebrand said. “We haven’t been there since 2011 so none of these players have seen this one. I know it is challenging and the wind can certainly be a factor there.”

He said that the Panthers will get a practice round Thursday, before the tournament begins at 9 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.

Hildebrand said he expects the Wheatland and Lander boys to battle it out for a team title, while the Douglas girls are favorites. He said he anticipates the Panthers to be in the mix for several top 10 individual finishes, while both teams could battle for a top five team finish.