Greater Lynchburg High School Golf Season Opens with Caitlyn Baxter Firing 2-Under 70

Amherst County senior captures the Raider Invitational individual title as Liberty Christian takes the team championship at Falling River Country Club. Read all about it in the Baird Private Wealth Management Greater Lynchburg High School Golf Report.

Week 1 • August 3, 2026
Raider Invitational
Falling River Country Club • Appomattox, Va

Amherst County senior Caitlyn Baxter opens the season with a victory, while Liberty Christian captures the team championship at the Raider Invitational.

High school golf returned to Greater Lynchburg last week with Amherst County's Caitlyn Baxter wasting little time putting her name atop the leaderboard.

Baxter opened her senior season by firing a 2-under-par 70 to win the Raider Invitational on Monday at Falling River Country Club in Appomattox.

The William & Mary commit finished with the only sub-par round of the day and finished two shots ahead of Randolph-Henry's Parker Allen and Jefferson Forest's Conner Lamanna, who each shot even-par 72 in the 67-player field.

Baxter entered her senior season after finishing runner-up in the VHSL Class 4 state championship last fall. She also competed in several major events over the summer. At the Donna Andrews Invitational at Boonsboro Country Club, Baxter recorded six birdies and an eagle over the final 36 holes. The following week, she finished eighth at the Women's State Open of Virginia.

Liberty Christian Takes Team Title

While Baxter claimed individual honors, Liberty Christian Academy captured the first team championship of the season.

The Bulldogs posted a four-player score of 309, seven shots better than runner-up Randolph-Henry at 316. Tournament host Appomattox County finished third at 320, followed by Jefferson Forest at 334 and Mecklenburg County at 345.

Sophomore Matthew Stephens led LCA with a 3-over 75, good for fifth individually. Dylan Maddox followed with a 76, Baylor Ritter shot 77 and Logan Walker and Adam Markowski each finished at 81.

Appomattox placed two golfers in the individual top 10. Owen Chavis led the Raiders with a 78 to finish ninth, while Carter Boehmer shot 79 to finish 10th. Gage Evans and Coleman Almond added rounds of 81 and 82, respectively.

Jefferson Forest's fourth-place finish was led by Lamanna's 72. Angela Liu shot 82, Eric Sprinkle finished with an 89 and Will Carson added a 91 to complete the Cavaliers' four scoring rounds.

How Others Fared at Falling River

Amherst County finished sixth with a team score of 364 behind Baxter's tournament-winning 70. Willie Hurley shot 93, Robert Hamilton finished at 100 and Hunter Doss shot 101.

Liberty High finished seventh at 370. Jayce Macaioni led the Minutemen with an 81, followed by Tripper May at 94, Jeb Stanley at 96 and Jax Bomar at 99.

Rustburg finished eighth with a 394, led by CJ Jones' 9-over 81. Berkley Tweedy and Carson Bryant each shot 105, with Logan Fisher adding a 109.

Heritage finished ninth at 415. Kingston Manning led the Pioneers with a 97, followed by Haven Manning at 102, Grant Manning at 105 and Lucas Takacs at 111.

William Campbell posted a 427 to finish 10th. Beckett Pritt led the Generals with a 95, Colin Elder shot 102, Jordyn Wilson finished at 113 and Trafton Martin shot 117.

Altavista finished 12th at 514. Jayden Hogan led the Colonels with a 104.

Baird Private Wealth Management Leaderboard

Raider Invitational Results

Falling River Country Club — Par 72

Tournament Medalists

Team Standings

1. Liberty Christian — 309
2. Randolph-Henry — 316
3. Appomattox County — 320
4. Jefferson Forest — 334
5. Mecklenburg County — 345
6. Amherst County — 364
7. Liberty High — 370
8. Rustburg — 394
9. Heritage — 415
10. William Campbell — 427
11. Luray — 472
12. Altavista — 514

Individual Results

70 — Caitlyn Baxter (Amherst County)
72 — Parker Allen (Randolph-Henry), Conner Lamanna (Jefferson Forest)
74 — Brayden Shriver (Mecklenburg)
75 — Matthew Stephens (LCA)
76 — Caden Powell (Randolph-Henry), Dylan Maddox (LCA)
77 — Baylor Ritter (LCA)
78 — Owen Chavis (Appomattox)
79 — Carter Boehmer (Appomattox)
81 — Jayce Macaioni (Liberty), Gage Evans (Appomattox), CJ Jones (Rustburg), Logan Walker and Adam Markowski (LCA)
82 — Coleman Almond and Wesley Glover (Appomattox), Angela Liu (JF)
83 — Cole Toombs (Randolph-Henry)
85 — Garrett Mason (Randolph-Henry)
86 — Carter Brankley (Mecklenburg), Pax Boyer (LCA)
87 — Jake Chandler (Appomattox)
89 — Eric Sprinkle (Jefferson Forest)
90 — Garrison Agee (Randolph-Henry)
91 — Will Carson (Jefferson Forest), Collin Hamrick (Jefferson Forest)
92 — Jake Wesson (Mecklenburg)
93 — Willie Hurley (Amherst County), Carson Davidson (Mecklenburg)
94 — Tripper May (Liberty), Jeter Jones (Mecklenburg), Ethan Williams (Luray)
95 — Beckett Pritt (William Campbell), Aiden Reed (Mecklenburg)
96 — Jeb Stanley (Liberty)
97 — Kingston Manning (Heritage)
99 — Spencer Gibbs (Randolph-Henry), Jax Bomar (Liberty)
100 — Robert Hamilton (Amherst County)
101 — Hunter Doss (Amherst County), Jackson Keith and Cole Caron (Liberty)
102 — Colin Elder (William Campbell), Haven Manning (Heritage)
103 — Griffin Seah (Amherst County), Mark Dalton (Rustburg), Marin Cook (JF)
104 — Dean McNerney (Amherst County), Jayden Hogan (Altavista)
105 — Grant Manning (Heritage), Berkley Tweedy and Carson Bryant (Rustburg)
109 — Logan Fisher (Rustburg)
111 — Lucas Takacs (Heritage)
113 — Jordyn Wilson (William Campbell)
117 — Trafton Martin (William Campbell)
119 — Sydney Kerr (William Campbell)
123 — Forrest Griffith (Luray)
125 — Brentley Hamlett (Rustburg)
127 — Parker Molina (Luray)
128 — Parker Samuels (Luray)
129 — Loftin Hazelwood (Heritage)
131 — Parker Mayhew (Altavista)
136 — Tyler Stickle (Heritage)
138 — Colton Mattox (Altavista)
141 — Lucas Stevens (Altavista)

⛳ Raider Invitational Review

One Team, One Leaderboard

A quick note for readers new to Virginia high school golf: the regular-season competition is co-ed. Boys and girls compete for the same school teams and appear together on the same tournament leaderboard.

That means Amherst County's Caitlyn Baxter 2-under 70 was the lowest score among all 67 golfers and made her the Raider Invitational's overall individual champion.

The postseason adds another layer. Golfers can advance through VHSL regional competition to state championships based on their school's classification. The VHSL also conducts a separate Girls Open postseason for female golfers. Kathryn Ha of Salem won the co-ed Class 4 individual state championship in 2024 and also won the Girls Open state championship that year. Lynchburg Agenda will provide a more detailed look at the postseason format as the season progresses.

Opening Week by the Numbers

66 — Player field
12 — Teams in the field
70 (-2) — Caitlyn Baxter's winning score
309 — Liberty Christian's championship team score
7 strokes — LCA's margin of victory
72 — Conner Lamanna's even-par round, the lowest among Greater Lynchburg golfers behind Baxter
6 — Greater Lynchburg teams finishing among the top 10

Next on the Tee

The early-season schedule continues at London Downs Golf Club with the John Scott Memorial, another tournament featuring a large contingent of Greater Lynchburg schools. Heritage High School is the host team for the event which tees off Thursday, Aug. 6, at 1:30 p.m.

Amherst County's Caitlyn Baxter returns as the defending individual champion after shooting a 4-under-par 68 to win last year's John Scott Memorial.

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