Aycock's Mitchell signs NLI with Louisburg College

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on May 16, 2013 1:49 PM

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Louisburg College men's golf coach Charles Sloan hadn't thought too much about searching for recruits in eastern North Carolina ... until Dylan Mitchell gave him a call.

Mitchell asked if Sloan had any openings in his program.

Sloan said he did.

The two talked more, met for a round of golf and Sloan liked Mitchell's demeanor on the course. Mitchell, meanwhile, gravitated toward the small-campus setting and felt Louisburg's academic curriculum would favor his interest in dentistry.

The Charles B. Aycock cemented his decision Wednesday, signing a national letter-of-intent with the Hurricanes. Mitchell looked at Cape Fear Community College and William Peace University before choosing Louisburg.

"I feel like I'll do better at a small college," Mitchell said. "I work really hard and I think I can bring a lot to the team. Everything is going to be different, don't really know what to expect (in college) so that might be the hardest (challenge)."

Mitchell earned all-Eastern Carolina 3-A Conference honors each of his four varsity seasons with the Golden Falcons. He helped lead the team to regional appearances as a sophomore and junior, and played as an individual in the regional during his freshman and senior campaigns.

He carded a career-low 71 during non-conference play this season.

"As the season went on, he got much better," first-year CBA head coach David Elmore said. "The last three out of our four matches, he was outstanding. The key is working on consistency because he has the ability to shoot low and has shown it."

Mitchell's strengths are his play off the tee and use of irons on the fairway. Like most golfers, he struggles when he reaches the greens. Adjusting to the greens' speed and firmness has proven to be his biggest adversary on most courses.

The soft-spoken golfer says he could have practiced a little more this season. He also understands that moving on after a bad round of golf is the most important aspect of keeping his mental game fresh.

Louisburg lost three All-Americans after play in the fall. Sloan thinks Mitchell can step in and produce for the Hurricanes, who have sent 12 All-Americans to the next collegiate level.

"The losses devastated us, to tell you the truth, so we were a weak team this past spring," Sloan said. "I like Dylan's maturity on the golf course, he feels very confident about his game. I think he will continue to improve on his short game and his putting. I feel like he's a team player (and) will be a good influence on the incoming golfers that we have.

"I think he will be very successful at Louisburg. Hopefully, he will move on to the next step."