The Whitharral Panthers competed at the 1A Boys Golf State Championship Tournament this past Monday and Tuesday at the Crystal Falls Golf Club in Leander, resulting in a top 10 individual finish for se nior Copper Popelka and a top 10 team finish for the Panthers.
Popelka shot a 164 to place eighth out of 71 competitors, missing out on the top 5 by only two strokes.
Other Panthers finishers included freshman Hudson Prowell and junior Dillon Johnson both shooting a 190 to tie for 43rd, junior Bryar Sherrill shooting a 195 to place 50th and junior Cale Dockery shooting a 217 to place 65th.
Those efforts combined for a total score of 739 for the Panthers, which placed eighth out of 12 eligible teams, and following the tournament, Whitharral Head Golf Coach Ben Prow- ell reflected on their per formance and season as a whole.
“I am very proud of our boys golf team this year. This is the first time in school his tory to have a full team make it to the State Tournament,” Coach Prowell said. “It was an invaluable experience for these guys. We have a lot of interest in golf down to our junior high kids, so I’m excited to see how this program will continue to grow moving forward.”