Clay County team finishes as Region 4-A Runners-up

SEVIERVILLE-A pair of Clay County High School Bulldog golfers teed off at the TSSAA Class A Golf State Championships Monday, after they qualified for the event last week when the team finished as the Region 4-A Runners-up.

Aiden Keen’s 79 and Brady Dailey’s 85 led the Dawgs to the second-place finish and notched them the individual State Tournament berths.

Historically, Keen and Dailey join an elite local group who have advanced as individuals.

Former individual boys State Tournament qualifiers include Dalton Strode (2017), B.J. Emberton (2018), and Zachary Schmucker (2021)—who was also part of a 2020 team appearance with Jeffery Spivey, Colton Smith, Jacob Coffelt, and Will Dodson.

The 2020 squad also won the Region 4-A Championship the same year, with Aden Smith leading the way by shooting a 78.

Girls individual State Tournament qualifiers include Molly Reecer (1999) and Savanna Strode (2012-13), while Morgan Stewart, Kendal Johnson, Kama Johnson, and Kindal Roberts qualified as a team in 2017 when they won the Region 4-A Championship.

Keen and Dailey played alongside Nolan Adams (97), Lance Burchett (101), and Ethan Hayes (107) in region action.

The team shot a combined score of 362, which was just shy of region champion Monterey’s 332.

Keen’s sub-80 score was the third best of the region tournament, close behind Monterey’s Landen Raines’ 77 and Garrett Wessles’ 74.

Keen and Dailey were set to play both Monday and Tuesday in the State Championships after HORIZON press time here at the Sevierville Golf Club’s River Course, after enjoying a practice round Sunday.

For more information about their finish, visit the Clay County High School Golf Facebook page or tssaasports.com.