Waccamaw boys golf team begins pursuit for repeat at No. 1

Even as his team was receiving its state title rings from the previous season, Waccamaw boys golf coach Chris Daly’s eyes were already set on the next one — and the pursuit of another championship.

“It feels great to come back and have the boys get this presentation in front of the home crowd, how great an accomplishment it was,” he said. “It’s kind of fitting that this comes at the end of 2016 that we do this, as it is a fitting way to put a close on the championship. This is behind us now, and we can look forward to going and getting another.”

In the opinion of his peers statewide, Daly’s Warriors have all the tools for another run.

Waccamaw is ranked No. 1 in the High School Golf Coaches Association’s (HSGCA) Class 3A preseason poll. It leads a list of four area squads ranked in their respective classification’s top 10 to begin the 2017 campaign.

Arch-rivals North Myrtle Beach and Myrtle Beach find themselves in the top 10 of Class 4A, the Chiefs coming in at No. 3, while the Seahawks are seventh.

Aynor is expected to give defending state champion Waccamaw its closest run for the money in Region VI-3A, the Blue Jackets coming in at No. 8 in the classification.

Boiling Springs tops the Class 5A poll, with A.C. Flora and Christ Church ranked No. 1 in Class 4A and Class 2A-A, respectively.

Class 5A

1. Boiling Springs

2. Gaffney

3. Wando

4. Byrnes

5. Dorman

6. Lexington

7. JL Mann

8. Easley

9. Spring Valley

10. Sumter

Class 4A

1. AC Flora

2. Wren

3. North Myrtle Beach

4. Hilton Head

5. North Augusta

6. Eastside

7. Myrtle Beach

8. Harstville

9. South Aiken

10. Chapin

Class 3A

1. Waccamaw

2. Bishop England

3. Pendleton

4. Gilbert

5. Bluffton

6. Emerald

7. Mid-Carolina

8. Aynor

9. Camden

10. Oceanside Collegiate

Class 2A-A

1. Christ Church

2. Ninety Six

3. St. Joseph’s

4. Fox Creek

5. Andrew Jackson

6. Buford

7. McBee

8. Southside Christian

9. Bamberg-Ehrhardt

T-10. Saluda

T-10. Barnwell

This story was originally published February 14, 2017 at 6:10 PM with the headline "Waccamaw boys golf team begins pursuit for repeat at No. 1."