Piedra Vista senior Quinn Yost set to play golf at University of Nebraska

FARMINGTON — Piedra Vista High School senior Quinn Yost, one of the nation's top junior golfers, signed a national letter of intent this week and will play collegiate golf for the University of Nebraska.

Yost, who just two weeks ago took home top honors in the Notah Begay III Junior Golf National Championship at the Koasati Pines at Coushatta Golf Course in Kinder, Louisiana, announced his decision on Monday surrounded by coaches, teammates and family at the San Juan Country Club.

"It's an exciting choice for me," Yost said. "They have a really great program there and it's a good challenge to take my game to that level."

Yost joins a nationally recognized program now being coached by Brett Balak, who took over the job as men's coach earlier this summer after serving as an assistant coach to Mark Hankins for the past several seasons. 

Balak previously spent 18 seasons as the head coach at Nebraska Wesleyan, leading that team to eight top-10 finishes at the NCAA Division III Championships, including the 2006 NCAA title.

"I feel like it's a giant family there," Yost said of joining the University of Nebraska. "College sports are treated like the pros there."

More:Nebraska student-athletes achieve 94 percent graduation success rate

Yost, the defending state individual champion in Class 5A, is excited for the challenges that lie ahead when he joins the Cornhuskers team next spring.

"Playing tougher courses and playing at the college level will be trickier," Yost said. "You have to learn to play different types of courses and how to adjust your game."

Located in the capital city of Lincoln, the University of Nebraska is home to several top golf courses, including Wilderness Ridge, Hillcrest Country Club and Firethorn Golf Club, host of the NCAA Division III Men’s Golf Championship, the USGA Women’s Amateur Championship and recently rated among the top 100 modern courses in the country.

The University of Nebraska's men's golf team's best showing in the Big 10 Conference championships came in 2019, finishing fifth. The University of Illinois has won the conference championship six times in a row.

Tom Yost, boys golf coach at Piedra Vista and Quinn's father, joined Quinn at the signing along with family, teammates and coaches from Piedra Vista's golf team.

"To see players on your teams get to play at the collegiate level is a major part of the reason why I coach high school golf," Tom said. "It is amazing to see a player like Quinn continue to develop and reach his dreams."

More:Piedra Vista's Yost wins Junior Golf National Championship event

Coming off his most recent tournament victory, Quinn now has his sights set on his next big event, which will take place this weekend in Orlando, Florida.

Quinn is scheduled to play in the Tournament of Champions beginning Saturday, Dec. 4, hosted by the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour, part of a national championship weekend of events scheduled across the state of Florida. Yost will be competing in that two-day tournament against as many as 125 golfers from around the country.

Steve Bortstein can be reached via email at SBortstein@Gannett.com, via Twitter @DTSBortstein or on the phone at (505) 635-2680.