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Loyd Star's Kaylin Hester won the low medalist honor for the Girls MHSAA Class 1 Region 8 District golf tournament Tuesday. Hester shot a 78 to help her team qualify for the state championship. (Hunter Cloud | The Daily Leader)

Loyd Star's Casen Easterling sinks a putt. He shot a 78 to help his team qualify for the MHSAA Class 1 State Championships. (Hunter Cloud | The Daily Leader)

West Lincoln's Gabe Gennaro shot a 78 to qualify for the MHSAA Class 1 State Championships in a district tournament Tuesday. (Hunter Cloud | The Daily Leader)

Enterprise's Jerrod Nations shot a 96 to lead the Yellow Jackets in his final district championship. Nations was a leader for a young and learning golf team. (Hunter Cloud | The Daily Leader)

BROOKHAVEN — Loyd Star’s Brody Thibodeaux and Kaylin Hester took low medalist honors Tuesday in a Class 1 MHSAA Region 8 district championship. The Hornets took first place in the boys and girls competition and Wesson finished second in girls to qualify for the state championships. 

West Lincoln missed the team qualifier but two Bears advanced to the boys state tournament. Gabe Gennaro and Sherman Hyer shot scores low enough to reach state. Gennaro is a junior and finished tied for fourth on the day. 

“It feels good to play well when it matters. I qualified for state last year too,” Gennaro said. “I played a lot and got better from last year.” 

Hyer said his teammate hit the ball way further this season and his swing improved. Gennaro got his start in golf thanks to his neighbor Braden Wilson inviting him to play. He has stuck with it and made some good par putts to qualify for state. Gennaro said he hopes to keep playing golf in college if he can. 

Tuesday was a big day for Hyer too. The young man, who started coming to the course when he was six months old, qualified for state after coming close in his seventh and eighth grade years. 

Hyer is a freshman at West Lincoln and loves golf. 

“I’m just happy. I started focusing on golf when a pit bull bit me so I had to quit football,” Hyer said. “I missed football earlier this year but I’m fine with it now. I know I won’t get hurt as bad with golf.” 

Enterprise finished last to cap off a growing season for the boys and girl teams. 

Sacred Heart and Resurrection also qualified as teams for boys state. 

The girls state championship will be played at Sunkist Country Club in Biloxi on October 23 and 24 while the boys state championship will be October 30 and 31 at The Clubs at Ole Brook in Brookhaven. 

Final standing boys

1 – Brody Thibodeaux, 66 

2 – Riley Case, 76 

3 – Kayne Case, 77

4 – Casen Easterling, 78 

4 – Gabe Gennaro, 78 

6 – Richard Burks, 79

6 – Philip LaChausse, 79 

8 – Mateo Rouhbakhsh, 81 

9 – Sherman Hyer, 82 

10 – Caden White, 83 

10 – Michael Decoteau, 83 

10 – Nathan Mills, 83 

13 – Sullivan May, 86 

14 – Ethan Keenum, 87

15 – Britton Busby, 89

16 – Trace Tingle, 90 

17 – Ethan Haigler, 94 

18 Jerrod Nations, 98

19 – Cole Jordan, 101

20 – Cooper Jordan, 103 

21 – Carson Temple, 107 

22 – Luke Gennaro, 115 

23 –  Tucker Vining, 121

24 – Mason Vining 131 

Girls final standings 

1 – Kaylin Hester, 78

2 –  Abby Burnette, 96

3 – Bently Roberson, 102

4 – Terra Vining, 109 

5 – Kali Denson, 110 

6 – Ainsley Gennaro, 112

7 – Zoey Ashley, 115

8 – Callie Parker Adams, 117 

8 – Leslie Ann James, 117 

10 – Skyla Veillion, 118 

11 – Jaycee Heard, 120 

12 – Amelia Laird, 123

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