Golf outlook: James Wood aims to capitalize on experienced roster

Through one week of play, the James Wood High School golf team has begun the 2024 season hot.

The Colonels finished seventh out of 25 teams in the 24th Curly Licklider Memorial Golf Invitational on Aug. 7. Brayden Rockwell, one of seven seniors on James Wood’s roster, scored a 2-over par 74 to help guide the team to a 490 six-person score. Two days prior, they won the Class 4 Northwestern District mini tournament by 14 strokes at the South Wales Golf Course to open the season.

Those two performances were exactly what 12th-year head coach David Oates is looking for this fall. As one of the most experienced teams in the area, James Wood is eyeing for a state championship berth.

To reach that point, however, the Colonels will have to compete with the four other district teams, Charlottesville and Orange County at the Region 4D North sub-region tournament to earn one of two spots in the Region 4D North tournament. The top two teams there qualify for the state tournament.

Handley, last year’s Class 4 Northwestern District winner and Region 4D North sub-region winner, had several of its top golfers graduate, including All-Area First Team selections Sam Thome, Jag Fitzsimmons, Dash Fitzsimmons and Jackson Bouder. The Judges do bring back senior Nash Sharma, an All-Area Second Team selection last season.

After leading Millbrook to a third-place finish in the Class 4 Northwestern District in 2023, head coach Tim Deegan is focused on improving year after year and being even more competitive this season. The Pioneers no longer have Rich Pell, who graduated in the spring after being named an All-Area First Team Selection in 2023, but they return junior Anthony Gelormine and sophomore Tyler Learn.

Sherando has a new, first-year coach at the helm, with 2017 graduate Jonah Pearson taking over the program. Pearson looks to bring the Warriors to new heights this fall after they finished seventh in the Region 4D North sub-region last season.

The Class 4 Northwestern District tournament will take place on Sept. 26 at Shenandoah Valley Golf Club. The results of that tournament will have no effect on postseason advancements.

That will be followed by the Region 4D North sub-region tournament at Blue Ridge Shadows Golf Club on Sept. 30. The Region 4D championship tourney will be played on Oct. 7 at Shenandoah Valley Golf Club.

The Class 4 Finals are set for Oct. 14 at Heritage Oaks Golf Course.

Clarke County won the Bull Run District in 2023 and is now looking to reach that same pedestal this year. Led by head coach Phillip Facemire, the Eagles return sophomore Grace Trent, who made the All-Area Second Team as a freshman last season. Clarke County (353) took fifth in the Region 2B tournament, three strokes behind second-place Madison County (350). The Mountaineers and first-place Fort Defiance (348) earned Region 2B’s two state berths.

The Bull Run District and Region 2B tournaments (both at Heritage Oaks in Harrisonburg) will take place on Sept. 23 and 30, respectively. The Class 2 state tournament is Oct. 14 at Great Oaks Country Club in Floyd.

The following is a look at each team:

James Wood

Coach: David Oates, 12th year.

Last year: Fourth in Region 4D; second in Region 4D North sub-region; second in Class 4 Northwestern District.

Key losses: None mentioned.

Key returners: Brayden Rockwell, Sr.; Jake Bursey, Sr.; Ian Longo, Sr.; Lauren Van Horn, Sr.; Laney Stiles, Sr.; Jay Bartlett, Sr.; Sophia Caruso, Sr.; Connor Causby, Jr.; Drew Longo, So.; Paige Littman, So.

Key newcomers: Alex Evans, Sr.; Peyton Blair, So.

Oates’ outlook: “We’re easily the oldest [we’ve been in several years]. We’ve got all seniors. Whereas, in the district, most of the teams are just rebuilding. So we’re in a very good position, but you never take anything for granted.”

Next match: Monday at Park View (Sterling) tournament at Algonkian Golf Course, 8:30 a.m.

Handley

Coach: Troy Mezzatesta, eighth year.

Last year: Seventh in Class 4 state; second in Region 4D; first in Region 4D North sub-region; first in Class 4 Northwestern District.

Key losses: Sam Thome, Jag Fitzsimmons, Dash Fitzsimmons, Jackson Bouder, Henry Felix.

Key returners: Nash Sharma, Sr.; John Casella, Sr.; Lang Shickle, Sr.; Adam Rosenfels, Sr.; Will Brubaker, Jr.; Sofia Bogaty, Jr.; Cooper Phillips, Jr.; Jax Pardue, So.

Key newcomers: Finn Slaughter, Jr.; Jack Pearce Gonzalez, Fr.; Aaron DeChristopher, Fr.; Marissa Sharma, Fr.; Hudson Slaughter, Fr.

Mezzatesta’s outlook: “We’re a young squad that will improve with time on the course and competitive rounds under their belts. With some key losses from last year’s squad, we have kids that have played, but just not enough competitive rounds, so we look to improve and get more comfortable each week as we gain some time experience.”

Next match: Tuesday at Class 4 Northwestern District mini tournament (at Shenandoah Valley Golf Course). Noon.

Millbrook

Coach: Tim Deegan, second year.

Last year: Third in Region 4D North sub-region; third in Class 4 Northwestern District.

Key losses: Molly Deegan, Travis Hambrick, Logan Limoges, Rich Pell.

Key returners: Anthony Gelormine, Jr.; Trenton Conley, So.; Tyler Learn, So.; Jude McGee, So.

Key newcomers: Finnegan Hepner, Fr.; Dylan Reich, Fr.

Deegan’s outlook: “With this group, they’ve been eagerly anticipating the start of the season. In the last season, they all kind of got together and decided what they were going to do in the offseason. To be honest, I think that really helped with preseason, and it helped with team unity. I think they’ve really set some high expectations for themselves this year, and we have really good, strong leadership from our junior Anthony Gelormine. For us, the teams around in the local area are real good, so our goal for Millbrook is just to continue to improve each year and just make sure that we’re staying competitive each year.”

Next match: Tuesday at Class 4 Northwestern District mini tournament (at Shenandoah Valley Golf Course). Noon.

Sherando

Coach: Jonah Pearson, first year.

Last year: Seventh in Region 4D North sub-region; fifth in Class 4 Northwestern District.

Key losses: Charlie Lease and Kieran Lindberg.

Key returners: Jackson Hepner, Sr.; Landon Rust, Sr.; Sam Brooks, Jr.; TJ Selznick, So.; Jay Sluss, So.

Key newcomers: Timmy Hill, Sr.; Danny Hill, Fr.; Ty Chunta, Fr.; Nick Sneddon, Fr.

Pearson’s outlook: “I think that we’ve got a group that is capable of being competitive with the area for the first time in a while, which is great. We’ve got some young guys who can really play. We’re very deep, so I expect to see a lot of faces get to the tournaments this year. I’m pretty impressed with the growth over the summer, and I think that that’s going to continue into the fall. We’ve got some athletic kids that can go low, for sure.”

Next match: Tuesday at Class 4 Northwestern District mini tournament (at Shenandoah Valley Golf Course). Noon.

Clarke County

Coach: Phillip Facemire, fourth year.

Last year: Fifth in Region 2B; first in Bull Run District.

Key losses: Hunter Breece, Joseph Ziercher, Jack Bowen.

Key returners: Caleb Erickson, Jr.; Dylan Hoggatt, Jr.; Jonah Ziercher, Jr.; Grace Trent. So.

Key newcomers: Emmet Morris, Sr.; Zac Shinabery, So.

Facemire’s outlook: “We had a wonderful season last year. We won district championships, I think, for the first time in a long time. We were pretty close to winning regionals, and I know that my team, myself and my assistant coach Tom McFillen, are looking forward to districts and regionals, and hopefully getting to qualify as a team for the state championship.”

Next match: Monday and Tuesday at Freedom (South Riding) tournament.

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