PLYMOUTH, Ind. - Another step in the process of molding Northeast Mississippi Community College's golf program into an annual contender comes into fruition this week.
The Tigers will compete at the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II National Tournament from May 23-26 at the Black Course of Swan Lake Resort.
It is the first time in school history that Northeast's entire team has qualified for nationals at the Division II level. The Tigers twice travelled to Jamestown, N.Y., for the NJCAA Tournament as a Division III affiliate from 2007-08.
"I don't have much hair, but I wanted to pull the rest of it out at the end of the fall," said Northeast head coach Derek DeVaughn. "The spring was a different situation and I'm so tickled that it all worked out in the end."
The Tigers punched their ticket to the Hoosier State with a third place finish at the NJCAA Gulf District Tournament, which was hosted by Copiah-Lincoln Community College at Beau Pre' Country Club in Natchez.
Northeast pieced together a two-day score of 606, which was only 10 shots behind runner-up Meridian Community College. John Daniel Deaton led the way for the Tigers by earning all-tournament honors with a two-under-par 142.
Deaton's fourth place result was highlighted by three birdies and only one bogey in the final round. The Booneville native has finished inside the top 20 on the leaderboard in three of the last four events.
"We seem to be coming into our own and playing some of our best golf down the stretch here," Deaton said. "It's a big opportunity for our school. I hope we can go up there and show out. I can't wait."
Codey Cleveland of Red Bay, Ala., has also been a major contributor to Northeast's spring semester turnaround. He reached the top 15 during the last three conference tournaments of the season.
New Albany's Andrew Fennell is making his second appearance at the NJCAA National Tournament after going to Joplin, Mo., individually as a freshman. The lefty barely missed out on receiving All-American honors after tying for 30th with a four-day total of 305.
Rounding out Northeast's roster are Caleb McDonald from New Albany, Alex Tatum of Hickory Flat and Kossuth's Trey Blackard. Five Tigers will play daily with the opportunity for one substitute after each round.
DeVaughn knows what to expect from Swan Lake's Black Course after three former Tigers, including Tate Dickerson, Jake Kilcrease and Austin Lauderdale, concluded Northeast's 2021 state championship season there.
"This is a different setup. There's hazards on every hole it seems like and there's so much undulation on these greens," he said. "You just can't let your guard down. You've got to be able to manage your golf ball."
The only negative in the weather forecast all week is a breeze between 10-15 mph during the middle of the competition. Sunshine is expected each day with temperatures ranging between the mid 80s on Tuesday to right around 70 by Thursday.
More than 20 teams join Northeast at Swan Lake representing the states of Arizona, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Tennessee. That includes defending national champion South Mountain (Ariz.) Community College.