By Catherine Garrett | [email protected]

The Corner Canyon High boys golf team tryouts this year were notable to say the least, particularly to head coach Derek Fox, who also runs Impact Golf and the Derek Fox Golf Academy in Draper and is in his fifth year at the head of the Chargers program.

“We had 15 kids break 80 during tryouts,” he said. “I don’t know too many teams in the country that can say that. It was pretty impressive. I knew we’d have a deep team, but this has got to be the deepest team we’ve ever had here and it’s a credit to the coaches and our facility at Impact Golf Center to be able to dial their games and swings in.”

Five CCHS players also returned from the National Invitational at Pinehurst, North Carolina July 11-13 with a 13th-place finish. Senior Gavin Dosch placed in the top-20 individually to lead the group, which also included Zach Labrum, Alex Edwards, Bowen Mauss and Maddox Vincent.

This season, Labrum, who was the team’s low finisher at state last year, teams with Edwards and Dosch to be the senior captains on the squad. Mauss, who tied for 26th in the recent U.S. Junior National Amateur, is the squad’s top player as just a sophomore.

Fox said Lone Peak continues to be the favorite that every other 6A golf team in the state is chasing, but feels good about his group’s chances this year. “We’re right there with them,” he said. “We may not always be the favorite, but we will always contend.”

Also on the CCHS squad this season are senior Joshua Sampson; juniors Krew Labrum, McKay Neyman, Owen Hitchcock, Xander Neeley, Davis King, Jackson Gale, Hayden Trujillo, Owen Watkins, Wilson Broadbent and Eric Jorgensen; sophomores Lincoln Blake, Cooper Meyer, Nolan Cloyd, Ty Anderson, Preston Wilde, Aidan Springer and Creed Covington; and freshmen Tyse Boman, Bostin Bloechel and William Pizza.

Fox is being assisted on the coaching staff by Brian Rueckert, Jason Labrum, Justin Labrum and Brady Boman.

So far this season, Corner Canyon defeated the Knights by one stroke in the first region match at Soldier Hollow Aug. 8 with four players shooting under par. Dosch had an 18-hole-score of 68, Mauss and Blake 69 and Boman 70 with Labrum’s 73 rounding out the top 12.

The Chargers also competed at the Lone Peak Invitational, a region match at Thanksgiving Point and the Ping National Championship in Greyhawk, Arizona to close out August. The CCHS squad is also scheduled to compete in Region 4 tournaments at Talons Cove Sept. 8, Old Mill Sept. 14, Riverbend Sept. 19 and Sleepy Ridge Sept. 29.

The region tournament will be held Oct. 3-5 at Talons Cove with the 6A state championships also being held at Talons Cove Oct. 10-11.

“We have a good team this year,” Fox said. “It’s a turning of the page for some new kids and there are always a few surprises every year. We’ll work on developing the talent we have and should have a good year.”