Coming off its lowest-ever finish at a G-MAC Championship in the previous season, the Hillsdale College men's golf team empowered a strong freshman class from the start in the 2023-24 campaign.
And that faith in their young talent paid off for the Chargers, who went from a 12th-place finish in 2023 to tied for fifth at the 2024 G-MAC Championships in April, and just one spot shy of making the NCAA Midwest/Central Super-Regional as a team for the first time since the 2020-21 season.
Hillsdale's three-player freshman class of Oliver Marshall, Robert Thompson and Ryan O'Rourke played in every event for the Chargers in 2023-24, and led Hillsdale consistently on the course. Marshall was Hillsdale's top player for much of the season, posting four top-10 finishes in nine events played with a best three-round score of 214 to tie for eighth at the Kyle Ryman Memorial this past October.
Thompson, meanwhile, saved his best golf for the end of the season, shooting under par in two out of the three rounds he played at the 2024 G-MAC Championships to tie for eighth and lead the Chargers in that critical end of season event. It was one of two top-10 finishes on the season for Thompson, who also placed in the top 10 at the Malone-Glenmoor Invite in September to help lead Hillsdale to its first team title since 2020 in that event. Both Marshall and Thompson earned All-G-MAC honors for their play in 2023-24.
Along with their two All-G-MAC honorees, O'Rourke was a consistent presence in the lineup for the Chargers as well, bringing steady play to the team as a freshman. He also had two top-10 finishes for the Chargers in 2023-24, including the highest individual finish of any Hillsdale player when he tied for third at the Nemacolin Intercollegiate in October.
Supporting the three stellar freshman was a wide cast for the Chargers, led by sophomore Maxwell Burns, who was regularly the team's scoring fourth player and another young talent who will be a factor for multiple seasons to come. Junior Filippo Reale and seniors Will Verduzco, Carson Stohler and Gerry Jones Jr. also made contributions for Hillsdale at a variety of events.
Hillsdale graduates four veterans -- including Stohler, Verduzco, Jones, Jr. and Darragh Monaghan -- that will have to be replaced, but have a strong core returning for the 2024-25 season with the three freshmen, Burns and Reale all having significant collegiate experience after this season. The Chargers also add two strong freshmen to the lineup, giving them a roster built to not only be on the upswing next year, but to potentially contend for multiple seasons down the road.