Oct. 7 -- VERMILLION, S.D. -- St. Thomas More's Hayden Heig used a strong start to his final round on Tuesday to power his way to a convincing win at the Class A state boys golf tournament at The Bluffs Golf Course.
Heig shot 69 on Tuesday and closed out a seven-shot victory in the individual competition, shooting 6-under 138 for 36 holes. Dakota Valley's Matt DeBeer claimed second place with a two-day score of 145, while Vermillion's Jack Johnson was third with a score of 148.
Heig, who led by two shots entering Tuesday after a 3-under-69 in the first round, put the pedal down for three birdies on the front nine and another at Hole No. 11. In two days on the front nine at The Bluffs, Heig played the 18 holes in 5-under.
A pair of bogeys bookended a birdie on the 15th hole on the back nine, but the Cavalier senior had no problem closing out a state title. Heig, who finished 27th individually during the 2024 state meet, is the first boys state golf champion for STM in the school's history.
On the team front, Dakota Valley won its second consecutive state championship in Class A, finishing with a two-day score of 599, and shooting 308 as a team on Tuesday after a 291 on Monday. Vermillion, playing on its home course, finished second after posting the team round of the day of 306. The Tanagers were second with 603, followed by St. Thomas More (634), Aberdeen Roncalli (642) and Sioux Falls Christian (655) to round out the top five.
After a 1-under-71 on the first day of play, Parkston's Landon Weber had a tougher day on Tuesday, finishing with a final round 79. But the two-day score of 6-over-par 150 was good for a tie for fourth place, alongside Vermillion's Cooper Girard and Canton's Carson Steffensen. Parkston teammate Kelby Neugebauer finished in a tie for 26th place (79-84 -- 163), while the Trojans finished seventh as a team, shooting 686 for the two-day competition, including 347 on the second day.
Chamberlain's Chase McQuirk was the other top-25 all-state finisher in the field from the Mitchell area. McQuirk shot 78-81 over two days and carded a 159, finishing in a tie for 19th place for the Cubs, who finished with a gross score of 700 and shot 363 on Tuesday.
Winner's Carter Craven was the Warriors' top finisher in 35th place (85-82 -- 167), and the Warriors were 10th as a team (713). Mount Vernon/Plankinton's Trystan Eide finished 44th to lead the Titans (80-92 -- 172). MVP finished 16th as a team (748).