Lowell Catron, Carthage High School head golf coach, has guided the Tigers for more than a decade, but last season’s edition was, by far, the youngest team he’s ever coached.
Last year’s starting six included two sophomores and three freshmen. Even so, the Tigers captured first place in the Cassville Invitational and finished fourth at the district tournament, hosted by Carthage High School.
Yes, the Tigers had their share of growing pains, including a sixth-place finish at the Central Ozark Conference tournament, but senior Jacob Anderson and sophomore Derek Peterson along with the improvement of everyone else gave opponents a glimpse of the future.
Though Anderson, a state qualifier last season, was lost to graduation, Catron returns Peterson, a returning state qualifier, this year, along with a slew of letterman and a solid core of talented golfers are returning with added experience.
“I have five letter winners returning and none of them are seniors … I’m excited about that,” said Catron, now beginning his 16th season as Carthage High School’s head golf coach. “We are working hard and expect to perform at a high level.”
Two years removed from a conference championship — albeit in the now defunct Southwest Conference — Catron is optimistic about his team’s outlook this season, particularly with the valuable experience everyone gained at the varsity level last year.
Peterson, as mentioned above, is the Tigers’ lone returning state qualifier. With that said, Catron believes his younger golfers — names like sophomores Tres Wright, Garrett Roberts and Kole Borland and junior Bryce Coy — can take the next step and swiftly improve throughout the season.
One challenge several local district teams faced last season was the move into a new class and conference: in the Tigers’ case, Class 4 and the COC. The good news is, Carthage, along with Webb City and Neosho, have had a season to become acclimated with the always-competitive COC and, again, the Tigers finished in the top five at the district tournament.
“We always practice to put ourselves in a position to play our best,” said Catron. “We always want to win state, conference and district. That never changes.”
The Tigers, who compete in the Class 4 District 6 golf tournament, Tuesday, May 4, tee off at 3:30 p.m. Monday, March 22, against Joplin and Webb City at Twin Hills in Joplin.
