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Golf coaches Wes Llewellyn and Peyton Perez, golfers Bryson VanHoutte, Chase Hadley, Leo Fiscus, Chris Drake, Aidan Dorathy, Jack Blackwell and head coach Shayne Shepherd after winning the Region 4 Tournament.
The Black Hawk College Braves golfers are headed to the NJCAA Division II National Championship after winning the Region 4 Tournament for the third year in a row.
Freshman Aidan Dorathy finished in 2nd place, sophomore Leo Fiscus tied for 3rd place, and sophomore Chris Drake was in a three-way tie for 5th place.
The Braves wrapped up the three-day tournament with a team score of 905, 18 fewer strokes than 2nd-place Highland Community College.
“Feels great to win back-to-back Region Championships,” sophomore Leo Fiscus said. “Feels even better to be heading to Nationals for the second year in a row with my great teammates and coaches.”
“I know if we all play golf how we can, we can win that golf tournament,” sophomore Chris Drake said. “But going into each day with a positive mindset is going to put us in a great position regardless.”
“Winning Regionals was huge because it gave us the boost to keep going and working harder heading into Nationals,” freshman Aidan Dorathy said.
Honors
For the third consecutive year – in his fourth year as head coach – BHC alum Shayne Shepherd was named Coach of the Year for Region 4, an honor determined by his fellow coaches in the region.
Three Braves players earned All-Region 4 honors.
All-Region 4 First Team
- Aidan Dorathy
- Chris Drake
- Leo Fiscus
In October, the Braves also won the 2025 Arrowhead Conference Championship and had five players earn individual All-Conference honors.
At the Deere Hawk Classic in April, the Braves finished 2nd in a field that featured seven of the top 20 teams in the country. Jack Blackwell took 2nd and Andre Marriott finished 4th.
Nationals
The Braves will compete May 19-22 in the 2026 NJCAA Division II Men’s Golf Championship in Plymouth, IN.
Players competing will be:
- Jack Blackwell of Bettendorf, IA
- Aidan Dorathy of Port Byron
- Chris Drake of Glasford
- Leo Fiscus of Davenport, IA
- Chase Hadley of Rock Island
- Bryson VanHoutte of Geneseo
Assistant coaches
The BHC golf staff also includes Peyton Perez and Wes Llewellyn, a longtime assistant who coached Shepherd and Perez when they golfed at Black Hawk College.