Brother Rice Turns Small Friday Advantage Into Saturday Finals Repeat

By Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com

June 11, 2022

GRAND RAPIDS – It was a smaller lead than the Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice boys golf team would’ve liked.

However, it was the perfect motivation to end the season the same way as last year.

The Warriors won their second-straight Lower Peninsula Division 2 Final on Saturday at The Meadows at Grand Valley State.

Brother Rice finished with a two-day total of 609, 17 strokes lower than runner-up Richland Gull Lake (626).

The Blue Devils rallied to edge third-place Flint Powers Catholic (628) and Grand Rapids Christian (630).

Gull Lake’s Bryce Wheeler won individual medalist honor with a stellar 138, which was four under par for the weekend.

Brother Rice led by only four strokes entering the final round, but pulled away throughout Saturday.

The Warriors were led by junior Lorenzo Pinili, who fired a 3-under-par 68 to finish the weekend at 144 and tie for second individually with Spring Lake senior Evan McDermott (71-73). 

“I think we had a tough day yesterday as a team,” Pinili said. “We thought we should’ve played a little better so we kind of took that and just put it as a goal to play better and not make the same mistake. I’m proud of how the team played today.”

Pinili was the only golfer in the field to shoot under par Saturday, and was 5-under-par through eight holes.

“I started off really hot,” he said. “And that just gave me so much room to work with. I got a little tired at one point, but then I got it back and finished strong.”

Brother Rice also received low scores from freshman Leandro Pinili (151), junior Marcus Lee (152) and seniors Kyle Gruley (162) and Matt Baer (163).

“It was close at the top, but the whole team just settled down and we talked about how tomorrow (Saturday) is a new day and we are going to play better,” Baer said. “We played like we knew how to play, and we really came together to get this win.”

The Warriors had won last year’s Final by 28 strokes, but associate head coach David Sass knew it was going to be more competitive this time.

“There were a lot of quality players in this field, and I think Division 2 golf is tough; it’s good golf,” Sass said. “It feels incredible to go back-to-back, and it’s hard to do.

“It was a battle the whole way, and it kind of turned into a test of who could get mentally focused the most. This course is extremely difficult, and big numbers are waiting for you on any hole. We bounced back after bad holes and played extremely well. I’m so proud of the way they performed.”

Wheeler, who didn’t place in the top 10 a year ago at the Final, shot a first-round 67 to grab a four-shot lead and then held off a group of competitors to win his first state title.

He closed with an even-par 71.

“Expectations were pretty high coming into this, and obviously I’ve had a pretty good year,” Wheeler said. “I think it’s all about preparation, and I had nearly two weeks of preparation for this.

Richland Gull Lake golf“I definitely felt like I had the potential to do this, and I just feel grateful to be able to do this. It’s awesome.”

Wheeler’s lead was shaved to one early in the round, but he made back-to-back birdies. He said he knew where he stood the entire way.

“I always look at the leaderboard, and I think it helps me because I feel like I do better under pressure,” Wheeler said. “I was nervous on the first hole because I never had to keep a lead before, but I just had to keep my head down and keep grinding.”

Wheeler carded four birdies and four bogies Saturday.

He finished his round getting up-and-down for par from the left rough on No. 16 and drained a six-foot putt.

“That was pretty cool, and I definitely wanted to make par on that last hole just to end the weekend,” Wheeler said. “It felt good for it to go in.”

Wheeler helped carry Gull Lake to its best Finals’ finish in school history, and his team accomplished the feat with an impressive final round.

The Blue Devils entered the day in sixth place, but moved up the leaderboard with stellar play and timely putts.

They fired a 312 on Saturday and also were led by freshman Hank Livingston, who had an 11 on the first hole but recovered brilliantly to shoot a 79 and 157 for the tournament.

Sophomore Ben Szabo (165) and freshman Chase Kosin (167) also contributed . 

“The kids never gave up, and they just kept going,” Gull Lake coach Thurman Walters said. “Everybody had rough patches, but we knew that if we play our best and make the best score you can then you give yourself a chance. I’m really proud of these guys, and it was definitely  a lot of fun.”

Walters also was thrilled with his No. 1 player’s effort.

“I’ve never seen anybody work like he does on his game,” he said. “You can’t have a kid with a better work ethic, and now we have to find him a school that will open their eyes and say, ‘Hey, this kid is pretty good.’”

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PHOTOS (Top) A Brother Rice golfer putts during Saturday’s second round at The Meadows. (Middle) Gull Lake’s Bryce Wheeler also putts Saturday on the way to winning the individual championship. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)

Team of the Month: Houghton Boys Golf

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

June 24, 2022

The Houghton boys golf team won its 10th Finals championship this season, and sixth Upper Peninsula Division 1 title over the last 10 seasons. Two of those other four seasons, the Gremlins finished runners-up. With a run like that, more success isn't going to surprise anyone.

But this spring’s team exceeded expectations.

The outdoor portion of Houghton’s boys golf season lasted about five weeks. The Gremlins’ home course, Portage Lake, opened May 9, and the team’s first outdoor practice was that day. But by June 1, the Gremlins were shooting in the 320s as a team and clinching another Division 1 title – earning the MHSAA/Applebee’s “Team of the Month” honor for May with that first day of June an exclamation mark on another fantastic season.

“Some of our other teams have had more golf talent. But these guys have worked hard and gotten better and better and kept improving and exceeded expectations a little bit,” said Houghton coach Corey Markham, who also leads the perennially state-contending hockey program. “It’s an awesome group.”

After finishing UPD1 runner-up and five strokes back of champion Marquette in 2021, Houghton took back the top spot this time shooting a 329 at Sage Run to edge Marquette by five strokes. Sophomore Marino Pisani (78) and junior Camden Markham (83) finished second and tied for eighth, respectively, in the individual standings. Juniors Cooper Leonard (84) and Ryan Schmierer (84), and senior Ryan Vlahos (85) – who also was back from the 2021 group – rounded out the winning lineup.

Corey Markham noted how his three returnees helped the lineup find more consistency this season. Marino dropping his scores into the 70s also was a big plus. “He puts in the most time and just lives golf,” Markham said.

Boys golf teams in Michigan could begin practice March 14 and competition March 21. The Upper Peninsula as a whole, due to winter weather, generally gets going later – but Markham said teams in the southern U.P. have even a two or three-week head start on those at the northern tip of the peninsula.

Markham called what his team can do with practice over that first month “minimal” – for obvious reasons – and also as it shares indoor space with the softball and baseball teams also waiting for the weather to turn. The golf team does some work on rules and with video, and uses a simulator to bring back some of the muscle memory from the previous summer.

The Gremlins played in two tournaments during the last week of April – nearly two weeks before that first outdoor practice. They finished third in both of those events and in another May 10 the day after they’d finally gotten outside. But soon after the run started, and Houghton clinched the Western Peninsula Athletic Conference championship on the way to finishing with another Finals title.

“Our biggest success is due to our junior program at our golf course,” Markham said. “You get kids out, and they play a lot in the summer. Their basics and their background are the reasons they’re able to step in and start doing well with a short season.”

Past Teams of the Month, 2021-22 

April: Plainwell girls soccer - Read
March:
West Bloomfield girls basketball - Read
February:
Cadillac girls skiing - Read
January:
Hartland hockey - Read
December:
Midland Dow girls basketball - Read
November:
Reese girls volleyball - Read
October:
Birmingham Groves boys tennis - Read