GolfNewsRI

The highly anticipated 2026 High School Golf State Championship gets underway on Tuesday morning at Cranston Country Club. 

First round tee times begin at 7 a.m. and end just after noon time. 

In this preview, GNRI will breakdown what teams made it, storylines and more.

GolfNewsRI’s coverage of High School Golf is presented by Golf365RI.

Who’s In

As has been the case the last couple of years, the five division winners got automatic bids into the tournament, and the next seven teams base on iWR got a bid into the dance. 

A total of 12 teams are competing for a title. 

The five division winners are La Salle, Prout, Barrington, Cranston West and Smithfield. 

The seven teams to get in based on iWR include Lincoln, Hendricken, Chariho, Coventry, East Greenwich, South Kingstown and North Kingstown. 

There will be a cut after the first round to the top three teams. 

Notable Individuals Playing (not part of team tournament):

Along with the teams, there are a handful of boys and girls playing for individual titles, despite their teams not making the tournament.

On the girls side, that includes defending champion Adriana Eaton, recent Bryant commit Elizabeth Kue, her sister Kamryn Kue, Cumberland’s Julia Nault and Lincoln School’s Maggie McDonald. 

On the boys side, names include St. Ray’s Anthony Boone, Westerly’s Jacob Paciga, East Providence’s Noah Araujo and Nathan Carter, Mt. Hope’s Luke Domina and Jackson Howland and Burrillville’s Rodney Frenette.

Storylines to Watch

5-Peat?

The major team storyline is the La Salle Rams looking to keep the dynasty alive by winning their fifth straight State Title. 

If the Rams get the job done, they would be the first team ever to win five-straight State Titles. 

Barrington won eight of nine, but never won five-straight. 

For teams looking to dethrone the Rams, they key will be who can hang with them for 36 holes. 

Expect it to be a tight race between Prout, Hendricken and Cranston West. 

A sleeper team to watch is the Lincoln Lions, who have been red hot over the last week or two of the season.

Coach Nick Maresca told GolfNewsRI in the pre season that this year’s goal was to make the State Tournament, and next year’s goal was to win.

Could the Lions be ahead of schedule?

Girls Championship

Moses Brown star Adriana Eaton will seek to close her high school career with back-to-back State Titles after cruising to a win in 2025. 

You may recall, Eaton fired a 65 in the first round and won the tournament going away.

A victory this week would also give her three State Titles in four years. 

To do that, she will need to hold off challenges from Johnston’s Elizabeth Kue, Barrington’s Claire McTaggart and Emma Lockhart.

Boys Championship

The Boys Championship is pretty wide open, as it usually is. 

La Salle’s Drew MacLeod enters the tournament as the defending champion and is the number one player in the state based on iWR. 

2024 champion Rocco Capalbo will look be looking to avenge last year’s debacle where he had the lead with a few holes to go. 

Watch out for super freshman Kailer Louangxay of Cranston West and Ray Rainville of Hendricken – more on them below. 

Other players you should expect to be a factor include Cranston West star Jack Marques, Lincoln’s Luke Cavanaugh and La Salle’s Brent Rollo. 

Super Freshmen

Keep an eye out for super freshmen Ray Rainville of Hendricken and Kailer Louangxay of Cranston West. 

Louangxay just took medalist honors at an RI Amateur qualifier at Cranston CC so he will be very comfortable. 

Rainville has given the Hawks a spark this season and has them in the mix to win a title. 

Speaking of titles, could one of them win the Boys title? 

Max Jackson won the boys title as a freshman and so did Rocco Capalbo, so there is precedent for it to happen. 

One way or the other, the next era of high school golf is on the rise. 

Notable Tee Times 

7 a.m. Anthony Boone, Jacob Paciga – first tee time of day 

8:12 a.m. – Kamryn Kue, Julia Nault, Maggie McDonald 

8:21 a.m. – Ava Andoscia, Adriana Eaton, Elizabeth Kue 

9:15 a.m. – Matt Lavoie, Pierce Potter, Zach Krueger 

9:33 a.m. – Nate Crossman, Tyler Cross, Mason O’Hagan

10:18 a.m. – Dustin Wiitala, Joey King, Josh Bergeron 

10:27 a.m. – Sam Ellis, Grayson Moore, Luke Cavanaugh 

11:21 a.m. – Ray Rainville, Rocco Capalbo, Christian Snowman

11:48 p.m. – Nate Jackson, Emma Lockhart, Jagger Dion 

12 p.m. – Brent Rollo, Mitch McTaggart, Kailer Louangxay 

12:15 p.m. – Drew MacLeod, Claire McTaggart, Jack Marques