Senior trio to lead Trojan golf team
Staff writer
Hillsboro High School golf coach Scott O’Hare is optimistic about what the 2022 season could hold for his team.
He should be when you consider he’s got a senior trio of experienced state qualifiers back to lead what figures to be one of the deepest teams he’s had with 19 players on the roster.
The senior trio of Frank Wichert, Eli Dalke, and Rylie Daniels have been on the varsity team all three years, excluding the COVID-cancelled 2020 season, but qualified for state in 2019 and 2021.
A three-sport standout, Wichert was instrumental in the Trojans’ deep run in the football playoffs back in fall as well as helping Hillsboro repeat as Class 2A state champions in basketball.
A Mid-America Nazarene golf commit, Wichert returns as perhaps the one to watch for Hillsboro as he came on strong a year ago to notch several top 10 finishes in tournaments.
Newcomers Duncan Duell and Garrett Helmer round out the senior class, and O’Hare expects the athletic duo to challenge for varsity spots.
After competing at the varsity level as a sophomore, Bryant Dalke is the most experienced of the five-player junior class.
The quartet of Josh Seibert, Makeena Reed, Josh Diener, and Ella Suderman are entering their second year on the green after competing at the junior varsity level a year ago.
The sophomore class is composed of four girls with Rylie Driggers the sole newcomer.
Annaleise Jorgenson, Monroe James, and Grace Hein all competed in a few JV tournaments last year and have shown great improvement from a year ago, with Jorgenson putting in a strong off-season.
O’Hare has a freshmen class that should make for brighter days ahead as four-fifths of the class are participants of his local junior golf camp during the summer.
Aaron Paulus is the lone newcomer, but O’Hare wouldn’t be surprised if Owen Dalke, Emery Dalke, Lincoln Wichert, and Gavin Priest don’t break in for a spot on the six-member varsity as the season progresses.
“I am excited to work with this group of kids,” O’Hare said. “Overall, they seem very eager to learn and improve, and they have shown a high degree of coachability.
“It will be a challenge with the number of golfers that are on the team and the large variety of experience and ability levels. Assistant coach Dustin Dalke and myself will need to be very strategic in practice planning to help get the newer golfers some basic instruction to get them heading in the right direction while providing more individual instruction to assist the more experienced golfers in progress in their game.”
The season will off Tuesday with an invitational tournament in Herington.