FALL SPORTS 2017: PAGE 13 PRESS & DAKOTAN ? PLAIN TALK Golf: Young Tanagers Aim For Trip To State BY ELYSE BRIGHTMAN VERMILLION elysebrightman@plaintalk.net Qualifying for the state golf tournament is a standard expectation for the Vermillion High School boys’ team, and this year’s squad will have its work cut out for them. The Tanagers will be led by two of the three returning players who qualified for last season’s Class A state tournament: junior Ryne Whisler and freshman Hunter Lavin. The pair tied with each scoring 180 over the two-day competition missing out on the top-25 placers by 10 strokes. “I’d like to return to state and do better than I did last year, and I would hope that our team gets there as well,” Lavin said. If there is one phrase not to describe this year for the Vermillion golfers it would be a rebuilding year, something typically used in high school sports. The young team Vermillion’s Hunter Lavin tees off during a tournament last season. The freshman will will be without any senior be one of two returning players for the Tanagers who competed at last season’s state leadership, but Whisler and tournament. 8/14 8/16 8/21 8/24 8/29 9/7 9/12 9/18 Boys’ Golf West Central Inv. Dakota Valley Inv. Dell Rapids Inv. at Lennox/Beresford S.F. Christian Inv. Vermillion Inv. Elk Point-Jefferson Dakota XII Conf. (Two Rivers, N. Sioux City) 9/25 Region 2A (The Bluffs) 10/2-3 State A (Dakota Dunes) 9 a.m. 9 a.m. 4 p.m. 9 a.m. 9 a.m. Lavin are looking to continue seeing the team grow and be very competitive in the next couple years. “Last year went well, but we are looking to do better this year with a young team,” Whisler said. “Hopefully we can grow in and in a couple years be a solid.” The two veteran varsity players will be working with a team made up mostly of middle school players with a few high school aged players with some junior varsity experience. Sam Ward, a sophomore, is going to see more varsity playing this year and Willis Robertson, an eighth grader, competed at varsity last season as a seventh grader and will be returning. “We’ve got a young team, so I it will take a couple years for us to get where we want to be, but I think we’ll have a good team in a couple years,” Lavin said. The Tanagers opened the season on Aug. 14 with an eighth place finish at the West Central Invite. Lavin led the team with a score of 85 and Whisler came in at 89. Robertson shot a 92, Ben Burbach scored a 97, Ward had a 105 and Jackson Girard shot 108. Vermillion hosts three competitions this season with the Vermillion Invite Sept. 7, a dual with Elk PointJefferson on Sept. 12, then the Bluffs Golf Course hosts the Region 2A meet on Sept. 25. The season wraps up on Oct. 2-3 at the Class A state tournament at The Dunes Golf Club in Dakota Dunes. SOUTH DAKOTA VOLLEYBALL Alcester-Hudson COACH: Vicki Ahart ASSISTANT: Hannah Swanson VITALS: Class B, Region 5, Tri-Valley Conference RETURNING: Jackie Hallaway (Sr., 5-4, Libero, AllConference HM), Julie Dickau (Sr., 5-9, MH/OH), Halley Kjose (Sr., 5-6, Utility), Amelia Stene (Sr., 5-9, MH, All Conference), Karlee Nygard (Sr., 5-6, Setter, All-Conference); Keandra Rhead (Jr., 5-9, MH/ OH); Sara Kemner (Jr., 5-7, OH); Elizabeth Hallaway (So., 5-8, OH/RH) OTHERS: Kendra Jensen (Jr., 5-7, OH/MH); Emma Pulfrey (Jr., 5-8, RH) Andes CentralDakota Christian COACH: Rocky Brinkman ASSISTANTS: Tracey Hopkins, Heather Hemeyer VITALS: Class B, Region 6, Little Missouri Valley Conference, South Central Conference LAST YEAR: The Thunder finished the season with a record of 12-15. RETURNING: Megan Mudder (Sr., OH, All-Conference, Most Valuable Player); Beulah Black Cloud (Sr., OH/ MH); Taylor Gray (Sr., Setter); Brieanna Deurmier (Jr., L/ OH); Sydney Muckey (Jr., OH/ MH); Melanie Mudder (So., DS); Hannah Hansum (So., S/ DS); Mackenzie Muckey (Fr., OH/MH); Isabel Phiefer (So., OH) NEWCOMER: Tyra Medicine Horn (Jr., OH/MH) Avon Dakota Valley celebrated a Class A volleyball title in 2016. Coach Rick Pruett moved on (now at College of Saint Mary), but the Panthers return several key members of a team that went 31-2 last season. setter); Lauren Sees (Jr., MH); Taylor Hamilton (Sr., OH) NEWCOMERS: Cheylee Nagel (Sr., OH); Kacee Zacharias (Jr., OH); Madisyn Cameron (So., setter) COACH: Tina Cameron ASSISTANT: Connie Gretschmann VITALS: Class B, Region 6, Little Missouri Valley Conference LAST YEAR: The Pirates finished with a record of COACH: Rob Wilson 13-12. ASSISTANTS: Becky JenRETURNING: Kaci Mudder sen, Alanta Lundstrom (Sr., MH); Livi Jurrens (Sr., VITALS: Class A, Region 4, OH); Hannah Van Gerpen (Sr., Big East Conference Beresford VHS Soc FROM PAGE 12 wins this season.” Last year’s young team is back and not so young anymore. Vermillion will roster seven juniors with one starting senior returning and one senior returning after a few years away from the game. Josh Prescott, the lone returning senior, will head the offense as a high forward. Last season the team struggled to put the ball in the net and play an entire 80 minutes that cause some late game losses and close matches that had the Tanagers losing by one or two goals. Prescott is looking forward to having a majority of the starting lineup back and seeing the experience leading to some wins this season. “Last year we really competed we just couldn’t get the job done in any of the games,” he said. “We were able to hang in there with the state finalists and all those other good teams, but sometimes we just fell apart, so hopefully this year we can just follow through and win a game.” The Tanagers are also relishing on the return of Nick Lubbers, who is coming back after a three-year hiatus from soccer. Lubbers broke his wrist freshman year and decided not to go out for the team during this sophomore and junior seasons. Now a senior, he is feeling confident in himself and the team as preseason practice continues to show improved chemistry among the players. “It felt really rusty the LAST YEAR: The Watchdogs finished with a record of 14-14. RETURNING: Jill Hansen (Sr., 5-8, LS); Hannah Nelson (Sr., 5-6, LS); Emma Williams (Sr., 5-11, MH); Nicole Niles (Sr., 5-8, RS); Alana Bergland (Sr., 5-6, Lib); Cyrah Gundvaldson (Sr., 5-4, Set) NEWCOMERS: Aubrey Twedt (Jr., 5-9, LS/MH); Shelby Mullinix (Sr., 5-7, RS/ Set); Jessica Niles (So., 5-11, Conference LAST YEAR: The Cavaliers finished fourth at the state tournament. Four starters from that squad graduated RETURNING: Brecken Bullard (Sr., H); Rachel Sestak (Sr., RH); Ciera Himes (So., OH); Emily Cap (Jr., L); COACH: Lindsey Fathke Macy Hajek (Jr., RH); Alli Van ASSISTANT: Alicia Dykstra Winkle (So., OH); Johanna VITALS: Class A, Region 5, Jelsma (So., S) Little Missouri Valley ConferNEWCOMERS: Kenzie Carence, Southeast South Dakota son (Fr., MH); Jenae Alberts first few days, but I’ve been watching a lot of soccer and I played my entire life before that, so it didn’t take too long to get back in the groove and acclimate,” he said. The season opened Friday, August 11, against James Valley Christian ,and with the players already familiar with each other the team has been able to pick up where they left off to prepare for opening day. “We are getting used to each other again and building our chemistry back up and it is pretty easy to do since we are returning a lot or players,” Prescott said. “We only lost two seniors last year, so it was pretty easy to get back into the groove of things.” Jacob Chaussee will return as the Tanagers’ goalkeeper, and Nelson expects him to see most of the min- utes in the net. Nelson and the rest of the veteran players are also looking forward to the young talent they are seeing from the freshmen and eighth graders and Nelson is expecting for some young players to see minutes at the varsity level. “I’d like to see some of the younger kids get some varsity minutes because there is some really good talent, even the eighth graders and some of the freshmen,” Lubbers said. “(I want to) see soccer get bigger in Vermillion over the next few years.” Even with an abundance of returning players, Nelson is looking to get the young players some varsity experience in order to grow the program. Nelson and the two seniors want to see the team continue to improve to earn some much needed wins MH); Hope Johnson (Sr., 5-5, DS); Aubrey Boden (So., 5-6, Set); Deanne Mann (Sr., 5-9, MH); Cali Boden (So., 5-6, LS); Kadison Satter (Jr., 5-9, MH); Madeline Dahlin (Jr., 5-7, LS) Bon Homme and to see the sport grow in Vermillion. “I don’t expect us to win every game, but we need to start building the program a little bit more from some of the last two years and I think this group is poised to do that and have a good foundation for the future,” Nelson said. He is looking to see the team finish in the middle of the pack this season, but to get there the Tanagers will need to “execute the game plan” to find the back of the net a few more times and play strong throughout the entirety to not give up those late game goals. “A lot of guys just really want to get better and they really want to win some (Fr., MH); MaKayla Kelley (Fr., OH); Sydney Mueller (So., OH) Elk Point-Jefferson COACH: Traci Kollbaum ASSISTANTS: Amelia Miller, Jeff Zeller VITALS: Class A, Region 4, Dakota XII Conference LAST YEAR: The Huskies S.D. VB | PAGE 14 games this season,” Lubbers said. “I think it is going to be really solid group. The team chemistry seems to get better every time, like when we practice and scrimmage it just looks better and better every time.” After the opener, Vermillion had a two-week break before being back on the field for another home game on August 26 against Groton Area. The Tanagers play perennial powerhouse Sioux Falls Christian twice this season with a home game on September 5 and away in Sioux Falls on September 19. The regular season closes on out September 21 in Vermillion against Freeman Academy. 201 W. Cherry St. • Vermillion • 605.624.2696 Go Tanagers 5 W Cherry St. • Vermillion, SD Good Luck Tanagers & area athletes! Serving The Yankton, Vermillion And Surrounding Areas Anytime, Anyday For Over 35 Years HEATING & COOLING 2401 Broadway • www.larrysheatingandcooling.com 624-4444 665-9461 • 1-800-491-9461