To say the Skyline Eagles ran away and hid from the rest of the field at this year’s 5A state golf tournament would be an understatement. The Eagles finished as a team at 23-under, far outdistancing second-place Woods Cross at 7-under. East also finished at 7-under but lost second place in a tiebreaker with the Wildcats.

Skyline led from almost the start, at 14-under after round one on the Glen Eagle Golf Course in Syracuse. Senior Jackson Shelley opened with a 9-under 63, and could have shot 61 except for a rare double bogey on 16. The Eagles shot a 9-under 279 in the final round on Oct. 15, winning the state title for the second time in three years and working past last year’s disappointment when its previous five-year reign was ended by Olympus. Nothing was going to stop the Eagles this year.

“We prepared well and we were ready,” coach Kenny James said. “Jackson was really dialed in from the beginning. I’ve watched him the past four years with an almost uncanny ability to predict what he’s going to shoot. Everyone was fully committed to getting the trophy back after last year.”

Shelley shot rounds of 63 and 68 to finish 13-under par. He was the medalist as a sophomore as well. His round included an eagle on the 14th hole that really helped seal the deal. His 63 in round one included seven birdies and two eagles.

The Skyline team included Shelley, fellow seniors Jake DeBry and Jackson Morgan, Olympus transfer junior Caden Shurtz and juniors Austin Shelley (Jackson’s brother) and Shane Mulvey. For the two-day tourney, Skyline had eight birdies and 10 eagles.

In addition to Jackson Shelley’s 131 total, other Skyline scores were Shurtz at 138, Austin Shelley at 139, Mulvey at 147, DeBry at 148, and Morgan at 152. Jackson Shelley led all “par breakers” with 10 birdies and three eagles. Austin Shelley had six birdies and Shultz five birdies.

“We set a goal at the start of the year that we were going to get back on top,” James said. “This course involves taking some risks in places, and our guys for the most part made the right decisions. It’s a true links-type course and the island green on 18 is the only one in the state.”

James loses Jackson Shelley to graduation as he is committed to play for BYU. Skyline also loses seniors DeBry and Morgan, but James has a bevy of other golfers returning. Skyline has built a deep program of golfers—more than 30 were part of teams this year, including a large group of freshmen golfers that James kept on the squad to help develop.λ