For the first time in 2026, the Durango High School girls golf team did not win a tournament, thanks to the impressive play of Kirtland Central and the Broncos’ top golfer, Hayden Dan.
Durango hosted the Durango Hillcrest Invitational on Monday at Hillcrest Golf Club. Golfers from 17 schools competed on a sunny spring day, and the Demons came up just short, finishing second to Kirtland Central. The Broncos finished first with a team score of 30-over par, combining the top three golfers’ scores, and Durango was second at 36-over par. Montrose rounded out the top three at 51-over par.
“The course is in great shape,” Durango girls golf coach Kirk Rawles said. “The kids today stepped up and played in a timely manner, which was awesome, playing in just over four hours. That makes it easier when we had over 100 kids out there. For everybody to get done in time, everybody has to keep on pace. So far, it’s been a great day.”
There was a lot of rain on Sunday in Durango, but the Hillcrest greens were still rolling quickly after they were cut recently. Golfers had to deal with wind and changing temperatures on Monday.
Dan, a sophomore, won her second tournament of the season for Kirtland Central with a 4-over par score, winning by five shots over teammate Makayla Manus and Montezuma-Cortez senior Amita Crowley. Dan finished with two birdies, 12 pars, two bogeys and two double bogeys.
It’s Dan’s third year on varsity, and she had everything working on Monday. The only negatives she could point to were a few missed putts. She was driving the ball accurately like she usually does, and she nearly had a hole-in-one on the short par 3 12th, which she tapped in for birdie.
The top Bronco admitted she had some tournaments where she didn’t play well earlier in the season, but she feels like she’s played well recently. Dan is excited to play her game the rest of the season, with the postseason about three weeks away.
“I’m confident on the course,” Dan said. “Eighth grade year, I was just scared, but I’m more confident on the course, I’m more talkative and more open.”
Junior Dylan Livingston was the top Durango golfer, finishing tied-fourth at 10-over par. Livingston had birdies on the par-4 sixth and the par-4 14th hole. She also finished with six pars, eight bogeys and two double bogeys.
“There were a lot of ups and downs, but with the wind conditions and how the greens were rolling today, I played a solid round,” Livingston said.
Livingston, a notoriously long hitter with her driver, liked how she used her driver and was happy with her putting. She wasn’t satisfied with how she chipped, and that will be a focus for her practice.
Before the Hillcrest Invitational, the Demons were 7-0 in tournaments this season, which is an impressive feat considering Durango lost two of its top four players from last year, Ellie White and Raimee Brant. Livingston said White and Brant are missed, but she’s proud of how seniors Jayden Craig and Riley Harms have stepped up, along with how new players Kierstin Maycock and Kailen Noonan are improving each tournament.
“Our team spirit, effort and camaraderie this year have been so fabulous,” Livingston said. “Everybody is so supportive of each other, and it’s just been so amazing. This is definitely going to be the year I remember, for sure.”
After Kirtland Central’s top two finishers, senior Dallas Dan finished 13th at 17-over par. Kirtland head coach Judith Camacho thinks her team can challenge for a state title after finishing second to Albuquerque Academy last year.
“My girls, they’re kind of going with the flow,” Camacho said “It’s been a little bit difficult adjusting to each tournament and the difficulty. This game is very unpredictable sometimes and even on a good day, you can still have really terrible shots that can affect the round. This round currently shows the full potential of what my girls can do.”