By Don Eskins (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The Kickapoo Chiefs stepped into the winner’s circle for the first time this year at the Springfield Invitational, on Monday, Apr. 8, at Millwood. Led by Lincoln Swann’s 70, the Chiefs edged the Nixa Eagles, 293-294. to grab this year’s 2024 Springfield Invitational title.
Top Medalist Peyton Burbridge, three under par, paced the Eagles with a tournament low round of 68. The Ozark Tigers, only three strokes back of Kickapoo, fired a 296 to finish third. Leading the Ozark effort was Riley Franklin who came in at 69.
“Our kids have had a really good year so far. They’ve played well all season, and today, extremely well,” said Kickapoo head coach Ron Yocum. “I’m so proud of all of them. These guys put in a lot of effort at practice. As a team we just want to get better every day. With today’s win, I’d have to say that all that hard work is paying off.”
“One of the reasons we have been coming up a bit short this season is that other teams have had a couple of players who consistently score among the top five, something we haven’t been able to do,” said Yocum. “Today, at Millwood, it was our turn. We had two players finish in the top five.”
Those two players would be sophomore Lincoln Swann, who carded a one under par 70 to finish third, and freshman Caleb Kim who posted an even par round of 71.
“Lincoln, up from last year’s JV squad, and Caleb, who is in his first year with us, stepped up big at Millwood. Placing third and fourth overall gave us the lift we needed to slip by some very good teams to pick up the win,” said the Kickapoo coach. “We hope, for the rest of the year, this trend will continue.”
When you post a 294, most of the time, you’re going to win. But not always.
“Yeah, we were a bit surprised. We were the first to post our scores at Millwood, and at the time we felt pretty confident that we had the win,” said Nixa head coach Jeff Lotz. “But about 20 minutes later we learned that this year’s winner was Kickapoo with a 293. Made us feel a bit like we’d been snake bitten.”
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“But all credit to the Chiefs, they played great in picking up their first win of the season,” said Lotz. “That’s just the way things go some time. Now it’s on to Thursday’s, April 11, Ozark Invitational.”
While Lotz was pleased with the effort he got from his team, he was especially pleased by the performance he saw from top medalist, Peyton Burbridge.
“I was really happy for Peyton, as we all were. He’s a solid player, but until here at Millwood, he hasn’t had that break out round this year, “said the Nixa coach. “He works hard at practice every day. No doubt this will be shot of confidence for him. Carding a three under par 68, to grab the tournament’s individual title, was quite an accomplishment for him.”
Also feeling somewhat snake bitten, after having posted a 296, were the third place Ozark Tigers.
“Yes, with a 296 you’d think your kids would be picking up a first place trophy,” said Ozark head coach Justin Perry. “However, our area is filled with some very talented teams and individuals. So, although somewhat disappointed for my kids, I wasn’t totally surprised.”
“But our guys scored in the 290’s to finish third and I couldn’t be more proud of them. It’s the first time they’ve posted a score below 300 all season,” said Perry. “I was especially happy to see them to finally post a number that represents our potential.”
Leading the way for the Tigers was freshman Riley Lincoln.
“For a freshman, Riley is a very solid and extremely mature player,” said the Tiger coach. “In only his fourth varsity meet of his life, placing second with a 2 under par round of 69, against such a talented field was incredible. I think life on a golf course, for Riley, looks to be very promising and bright.”
Scorecards- top three teams.
First Place- Kickapoo 293: 1.Lincoln Swann 70, 2. Caleb Kim 71, 3. Owen Jump 74, 4. Brady Powers 78, and 5. Nick Thompson 80.
Second Place- Nixa 294: 1. Peyton Burbridge 69, 2. Noah Naugle 74, 3. Jackson McRoberts 74, 4. Myer Lively 78, and 5. Dawson Huff 82.
Third Place- Ozark: 1. Riley Franklin 69, 2. Boston Huddleston 72. 3. Kyle Fitzpatrick 77, 4. C.J. Jackson 78, and 5. Luke Jenkins 79.
Millwood Team Results
1. Kickapoo – 293
2. NIxa – 294
3. Ozark – 296
4. Glendale – 305
5. Logan -Rogersville – 307
6. Lebanon – 322
7. Monett – 325
8. Branson – 335
9. Catholic – 342
10. Kickapoo JV – 343
11. Glendale JV – 344
12. Willard – 367
13. Bolivar – 369
14. Central – 377
15. Hillcrest – 426
Top Medalists
1. Peyton Burbridge – 68 – Kickapoo
2. Riley Franklin – 69 – Ozark
3. Lincoln Swann – 70 – Kickappo
4. Caleb Kim – 71 – Kickapoo
5. Jaxon Bailey – 72 – Monett
5. Boston Huddleston – 72 – Ozark
7. Hudson Feurbacher – 73 – Glendale
8. Owen Jump – 74 – Kickapoo
8. Noah Naugle – 74 – Nixa
8. Jackson McRoberts – 74 – Ozark.
