The Eagle Valley boys golf team is off to a strong start to the 2025 season.
Courtesy photo
Coming off a 2024 season in which it sent two golfers to the state tournament, the Eagle Valley boys golf team wants even more this fall.
“With our school hosting the championship at Eagle Ranch this season, we are looking to improve upon this and represent our program well by sending four golfers to the 3A state championship and hopefully have a golfer or two place in the top 10,” said assistant coach Kyle Hoiland.
The Devils’ depth means it’s been hard to tell who those four might be. Hoiland said the team’s focus and competitive juices have been flowing thanks to a recently adopted weekly leaderboard, which allows players to move up or down and earn their spots on a weekly basis.
“We are seeing guys on the bubble move up into the top spots, as well as the top-5 golfers shuffling around every week,” he said. “There’s no one golfer that stays at the top for very long, as these kids are hungry for that top position.”
Chris Marsh shot a 75 to lead the team to a seventh-place finish in Montrose on Aug. 21. Lawson Rumley led the team at the Longhorn Classic earlier this month, shooting a 76 to place seventh as the Devils finished fifth as a team. On Monday, sophomore Hudson Rozga — who finished fifth at regions to qualify for state as a freshman last year — shot a 78 to finish 19th out of 121 golfers playing against mostly 5A competition at the Denver East City League Invitational.
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“They are definitely the gel that brings the team together and they are making our other players better,” Hoiland said of the aforementioned trio.
Eagle Valley has missed the even-keel, calm approach of 2025 graduate Ben Vito, who made the state cut by one stroke as Aspen claimed the 3A Region 4 title last October. But the Devils have reloaded well.
Jaxson Talbot, Cooper Kirkman and Levi Daly are three new golfers Hoiland said are worth watching this fall. Kirkman finished fifth overall and first for his team with a 78 at the Skier Invitational earlier this month. Talbot shot an 86 at the Fruita Invitational on Aug. 11 and led the team with an 82 at the Grand Junction Central Tiara Rado Invitational on Monday.
“Jaxson plays the game with intent and finesse, thinking about every shot and strategizing,” Hoiland said before adding, “Cooper lived on the course this summer and improved his game tremendously. Levi strikes the ball hard, with good distance and a consistent swing.”
No matter who cards the best round, the group is guaranteed to blast yacht rock songs on the bus rides home.
“Surprisingly, we share the same taste in music,” Hoiland said. “Win or lose, whether they golfed well or not, the boys maintain a positive vibe on the rides back from these early morning tournaments. … I have to give commendation to our team as a whole. I have coached for 11 years and these boys are some of the most polite, respectful, and fun bunch of kids that I’ve been around.”
Eagle Valley will host the 3A state tournament at Eagle Ranch Oct. 6-7.Courtesy photo
Luckily, the Devils won’t have to drive far for postseason play.
The 3A state tournament will be at Eagle Ranch Oct. 6-7. Qualification comes with a twist: the Colorado High School Activities Association’s Legislative Council voted 44-22 in favor of eliminating the regional golf tournament at its January meeting. The rationale, as outlined in the CHSAA Legislative Council packet was as follows:
“A one-day regional tournament isn’t the best practice to have the top 84 golfers in the state. Travel for (a) one-day tournament can get expensive for outlying schools. The addition of the 2A classification has stretched our state golf courses and officials way too thin. Overloading these two entities could create a problem finding courses willing to host the state championships.”
Instead of a regional tournament, the top-84 golfers in each class will be determined on iWanamaker — a site and app used to compile golf scores — the Monday prior to state. Rankings will take into account a golfers’ best five rounds. While the new system puts a priority on every tournament, Hoiland said the team’s main priority is the process.
“This year we are having more focused practices, giving the players detailed drill work where they have to mark their improvement from the previous practice,” he said. “The boys are eating up this regiment and we are seeing improvement from top to bottom.”
The assistant coach said the theme of the team’s season is embodied in the creed they’ve adopted: accountability, awareness and consideration. Hoiland said those three qualities go a long ways in both golf and life.
“Repairing a divot or ball mark are as important as behaving in the classroom and turning your homework in on time or putting your dishes away at home,” he said. “It makes them better people and makes our community that much better.”
