The 2023 high school golf season is now over with the conclusion of the girls and boys state tournaments played over the last 10 days, and Greenwood had players involved in both tournaments. The Lady Bulldogs qualified as a team and finished sixth in the state overall, while Greenwood’s Everson Adams qualified as an individual golfer for the Bulldogs and competed earlier this week at Eagle Crest in Alma.
To make the cut for state competition, players and teams qualified through the 5A West conference tournament held at Mountain Home’s Big Creek Country Club on September 19th. But leading up to the league tournament, both GHS teams had other business to finish, starting with a trip to Bella Vista Country club in Northwest Arkansas on the last day of August.
For the Lady Bulldogs, sophomore Cambree Shrum led the way at Mountain Home with a 9-hole total of 47 strokes. Senior Aliana Garcia was next at 49 strokes, with senior Laci Cox firing a 53 and freshman Izzy Thomas shooting a 61. The top three scores counted in the team total. For the Bulldogs, junior Everson Adams led the pack with a 42, sophomore Dace Drennan carded a 46, while fellow sophomore Dean Hogeland shot 47. Senior Ben Bryan scored a 49 and sophomore Jackson Overton 59, with the top four scores used to calculate the team total.
The week of Labor Day, both GHS teams were scheduled to conclude their Ryder Cup series with Fort Smith Southside, with the Southsiders up 1-0 after their first round of competition on August 15th. But bad weather forced the cancellation of one of the last two Ryder Cup matches, allowing the Mavericks to win the 2023 cup by one point in match play. The Lady Bulldogs dominated the girls side of the competition, while Southside scored most of its points in boys play. In their second and final match, the GHS ladies won all four points while the GHS boys managed to salvage one point.
On September 6th the two GHS squads played at Eagle Crest in Alma in a match including other 5A West teams over 18 holes. For the Lady Bulldogs, Cambree Shrum carded a 95, Laci Cox and Aliana Garcia both shot 105 on the day, and Isabella Thomas shot 119. For the GHS boys, Everson Adams carded a team best 80, Dean Hogeland and Ben Bryan each shot 94, Jackson Overton 97, Cooper Hogeland 102, and Dace Drennan 114,
Against Lake Hamilton at Glenwood Country Club on September 12th the Lady Bulldogs took first place. Aliana Garcia led the way with a 97, followed by Laci Cox 100, Cambre Shrum 102, and Isabella Thomas 120. For the Bulldogs, Everson Adams carded an 84, Dean Hogeland an 89, Cooper Hogeland and Jackson Overton had identical scores of 96, with Ben Bryan at 102.
The following day Greenwood traveled to Russellville to take on the Cyclones and Lady Cyclones. The GHS ladies were led by Aliana Garcia with an 18-hole total of 95. Laci Cox was next at 108, Cambree Shrum 109, Isabella Thomas 114, and freshman Jordin Jackson 142. For the Bulldogs, Everson Adams carded an 84, Dace Drennan a 90, Dean Hogeland, Ben Bryan, and Jackson Overtone all scored a 93, and Cooper Hogeland a 96.
The Russellville match was the last of the regular season before the conference tournament at Mountain Home on September 19th. At Big Creek the Lady Bulldogs finished second, led by Ali Garcia with an 18-hole total of 99, Cambree Shrum at 106, Laci Cox at 113, with Isabella Thomas scoring a 125 in reserve. The Bulldogs were led by Everson Adams with an 84, while Jackson Overton carded a 90, Dean Hogeland a 99, Ben Bryan a 100, and Cooper Hogeland a 105. Adams’ score was good enough to qualify for state.
After the conference tournament, Bulldogs Head Coach Ryan Casalman said, “I know we didn't qualify for state as a team, but I am really proud of our young golfers. We will have everyone back for next year except for senior Ben Bryan, so the future is looking bright for Greenwood golf. I would like to say that Ben had a great season. He really only started playing competitively in the 10th grade, so he had a very solid career. I was proud of the way he competed in conference and Ben has a really bright future ahead of him. He is a fine young man and will do some great things, and I wish him the best. Besides Everson, [a junior], all the other golfers we had this year were sophomores and freshmen, so we are looking forward to being really competitive next year and trying to get our boys in the state [tournament].”
This past Monday and Tuesday, Coach Casalman and Everson Adams took the short trip to Eagle Crest in Alma to participate in the boys 5A state tournament, and the GHS junior had a great day on the links. Adams carded a score of 79 over the two days to finish 15th overall in the state in Class 5A. He will return next season to headline the Bulldogs’ lineup once again.
The girls 5A state golf tournament was played at Jonesboro on September 25-26 and the Lady Bulldogs finished sixth among 12 teams with a team score of 317. Aliana Garcia carded a 100 over the two days of competition, with Cambree Shrum coming in at 106 and Laci Cox at 111. Isabella Thomas scored a 123 in a reserve role.
Head Coach Lundon Lensing offered words of praise and encouragement for her players at season's end. “I’m very proud of the girls this season. They have overcome some rough days and adversity and finished second in the conference to qualify for the state tournament for the second year in a row. We haven’t been as consistent as we can be, but they have battled every match.
“It was a good season,” added the young head coach. “The girls always accepted the challenge of a new or tough course. Making it to state back-to-back years means our program is improving and headed in the right direction.”