Up to now, Discovery Canyon has repeated its accomplishments from a historic 2015 season, first by defending its Pikes Peak Athletic Conference boys’ golf crown then claiming the regional title.

The Thunder can only hope the similarities stop there heading into the 4A state tournament, which starts at 9 a.m. Monday at River Valley Ranch Golf Club in Carbondale. At last year’s event, a rough start put Discovery Canyon in sixth place after the first round, and the Thunder never threatened Valor Christian, which cruised to a 28-shot victory for the team championship.

“It was weird last year, waking up, not in my bed, and not having that home-cooked breakfast like I’m used to,” said Thunder senior Hayden Fry, who was making his state debut. “I tried to have the mindset that it was just another tournament, but you can’t do that here. It’s state. I’ve been through it once. It’ll be different this year.”

The Thunder did eventually rally for a program-best fourth-place finish, and three of its varsity players from a season ago are back to write a better chapter.

The first step to that result means overcoming those first-round jitters.

“I believe last year will be a great learning experience for us,” Discovery Canyon coach Mark Liggett said. “I’m pretty confident that they can play like they’re capable of, but I think we’ll come out a little guarded on Monday. They don’t have to go for a killer low round. They know they can come back on the second day. That’s when they can put the hammer down. The guys have the ability, experience and maturity, and it’s going to show well.”

If the regular season’s final tournament meant anything, the Thunder have dramatically closed that 28-shot gap from last year; they finished just two shots behind the defending champs at the Valor-hosted invite Sept. 20.

And that came on a day when Discovery Canyon was not playing its best golf.

“That was our fourth tournament in less than a week, and we were kind of exhausted,” said senior and four-time state qualifier Owen Pasvogel, who claimed a share of the regional title with teammate Luke Trujillo after 71s at Elmwood Golf Course in Pueblo. “But we wanted to play since we knew there were good players there and we could benefit from it. We had our worst team score of the year but were only three shots off. State is what matters, and we’ll see the same players again.”

Liggett sees the makings of a different outcome by the time the 36-hole tournament concludes Tuesday.

“I’m thrilled with the boys,” Liggett said. “I think they’ve fulfilled what they expected. Their final quest would be (winning) state, and that’s well within our reach.”

Up to now, Discovery Canyon has repeated its accomplishments from a historic 2015 season, first by defending its Pikes Peak Athletic Conference boys’ golf crown then claiming the regional title.

The Thunder can only hope the similarities stop there heading into the 4A state tournament, which starts at 9 a.m. Monday at River Valley Ranch Golf Club in Carbondale. At last year’s event, a rough start put Discovery Canyon in sixth place after the first round, and the Thunder never threatened Valor Christian, which cruised to a 28-shot victory for the team championship.

“It was weird last year, waking up, not in my bed, and not having that home-cooked breakfast like I’m used to,” said Thunder senior Hayden Fry, who was making his state debut. “I tried to have the mindset that it was just another tournament, but you can’t do that here. It’s state. I’ve been through it once. It’ll be different this year.”

The Thunder did eventually rally for a program-best fourth-place finish, and three of its varsity players from a season ago are back to write a better chapter.

The first step to that result means overcoming those first-round jitters.

“I believe last year will be a great learning experience for us,” Discovery Canyon coach Mark Liggett said. “I’m pretty confident that they can play like they’re capable of, but I think we’ll come out a little guarded on Monday. They don’t have to go for a killer low round. They know they can come back on the second day. That’s when they can put the hammer down. The guys have the ability, experience and maturity, and it’s going to show well.”

If the regular season’s final tournament meant anything, the Thunder have dramatically closed that 28-shot gap from last year; they finished just two shots behind the defending champs at the Valor-hosted invite Sept. 20.

And that came on a day when Discovery Canyon was not playing its best golf.

“That was our fourth tournament in less than a week, and we were kind of exhausted,” said senior and four-time state qualifier Owen Pasvogel, who claimed a share of the regional title with teammate Luke Trujillo after 71s at Elmwood Golf Course in Pueblo. “But we wanted to play since we knew there were good players there and we could benefit from it. We had our worst team score of the year but were only three shots off. State is what matters, and we’ll see the same players again.”

Liggett sees the makings of a different outcome by the time the 36-hole tournament concludes Tuesday.

“I’m thrilled with the boys,” Liggett said. “I think they’ve fulfilled what they expected. Their final quest would be (winning) state, and that’s well within our reach.”