Relaxed Approach does FHN's Schab Good
May 27, 2016
By Dean Holzwarth
Special for Second Half
GRAND RAPIDS -- Spencer Schab has a different approach to the game of golf this season.
The Forest Hills Northern senior isn’t taking things as seriously as in past years.
“I thought of it as, this is my senior year, it’s my last high school season, so why put so much pressure on myself and make it less enjoyable?,” Schab said. “I’m just going to go out and have fun.”
Schab’s change of attitude has served him and his team well.
The Huskies entered this week’s MHSAA District Tournament ranked No. 2 in Division 2, behind only Ottawa-Kent Conference Bronze rival Ada Forest Hills Eastern.
Schab, a two-time Lower Peninsula Division 2 all-state first team selection, has felt the pressure to produce low scores in recent years.
“The last couple years I’ve put too much weight on my shoulders to play well,” Schab said. “I’ve found that when I’m more focused on having a good time, like talking to my playing competitors, I end up playing better. This year has been fun.”
Schab has been a mainstay as the Huskies’ No. 1 golfer, but coach Brian Telzerow said his teammates have helped to ease the tension.
“He’s been the go-to guy so to speak and he’s always played in the No. 1 spot, but the nice thing about this year is all five guys who play can easily be the lowest score of the team,” he said. “Spencer doesn’t feel like he has to be the lowest guy, and so I think he is enjoying the game a little bit more because of that.”
Forest Hills Northern has a talented cast of seniors to accompany Schab in the top four. They include Phil Lodzinski, Chase Lebster and Brian McHale.
Josh Belfer is another senior, along with two freshmen.
The experience of the seniors has sparked the team’s success. It’s a group that has played together the past four years and has a strong bond on and off the course.
“That’s my favorite part about the team,” Schab said. “We’re all such good friends, and it makes the experience so much better for all of us because we’re a tight-knit group. We were friends before we were on the team, and being on the team has only strengthened our friendship.”
Lodzinski said the closeness among the seniors helps drive them to perform their best.
“We’re all best friends, and I think you try a little harder when you have friends on the team because you don’t want to let them down,” he said. “We have a good time together, and that makes it an enjoyable experience overall.”
The seniors played key roles in last year’s third-place finish at the Finals. They’re pulling together once again in an attempt to make a repeat trip.
“These seniors have played with each other for four years,” Telzerow said. “They know each other, they like each other and they have a good connection. They have a sense of we’re doing it for each other, just not for our own accomplishments.”
The ability to stay consistent also has been an important aspect, according to Lodzinski.
“We’ve had at least three or four scores in the 70s every tournament, and that comes with our maturity,” he said. “Compared to our freshman and sophomore years, we’re a lot better at managing ourselves on the course, and it’s led to better scoring and more consistency.”
All of the seniors recently graduated, and Schab said the stresses of the past few months have finally subsided. It has allowed time to focus solely on golf.
“I had a lot of extracurricular activities going on earlier in the year with AP exams and graduation, but it’s time to focus on practice and sharpening up for the postseason,” said Schab, who averaged 38.2 strokes for nine holes during the conference season. “Overall, I’m happy with how well I’m playing considering my shift in focus.”
Telzerow said Schab is starting to peak at the most important time of the spring.
“He’s starting to play better,” he said. “I think he did this last year where he kind of had a lull in the middle of the season and then really came on strong in the postseason. He shot 72 at the post-conference tournament and he’s the kind of guy that can go low very easily.”
The Huskies finished runner-up to conference champion Forest Hills Eastern. The two engaged in a competitive tussle throughout the season, and Telzerow hopes it pays off.
“We knew coming in that both of us had high-caliber players and we would be battling each other constantly,” he said. “And that happened. We both want to do well in Districts and Regionals. Our hope is to finish strong at the state tournament, but we recognize that you have to get there first.”
Districts begin today for the Huskies, and expectations are high. A lofty finish at the Finals would be a fitting ending to outstanding high school careers.
“Our whole goal is to win a state championship,” Lodzinski said. “We’re planning on working hard to make it to state and making a run at the championship.”
Dean Holzwarth covered primarily high school sports for the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years and more recently served as sports editor of the Ionia Sentinel and as a sports photojournalist for WZZM. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties.
PHOTO: Forest Hills Northern's Spencer Schab follows through on a swing. (Photo courtesy of Forest Hills Northern yearbook staff.)
Performance: Mona Shores' Nathan Taylor
May 13, 2019
Nathan Taylor
Muskegon Mona Shores junior – Golf
Taylor on May 3 had perhaps the highlight so far of an eventful season, shooting a 71 to earn the medalist honor at the Greater Muskegon Athletic Association championship tournament at Stonegate Golf Club while leading Mona Shores to the team title and earning the Michigan Army National Guard “Performance of the Week” for April 29-May 5. Reeths-Puffer had won the title the last two seasons, and Taylor brought a championship back home to his family as well – his father Tim, a 1990 Shores grad, also had won the tournament as a high schooler three decades ago.
Nathan Taylor and his team have enjoyed a significant rise this spring after closing the 2018 season shooting a 333 to finish fourth at their Division 1 Regional. Taylor had lowered both his nine and 18-hole averages to 39.6 and 79.2 strokes, respectively, heading into this past weekend. The latter remains on the downswing as he shot a 71 this past Friday at the Montague Invitational, finishing second after losing in a playoff, and also led the Sailors with a 78 on Saturday at the Wayne Wire Tournament in Frankenmuth. Mona Shores played in the Big Rapids Tournament on Monday, and Taylor shot a 73. The 71s at the GMAA and Montague events were his season-low rounds. His team, meanwhile, shot a 294 at the GMAA to win by 32 strokes.
Hockey always has been Taylor’s main sport – he plays center for the Fox Motors U18 AAA team, and father Tim formerly served as president of the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the United States Hockey League. But golf has become a passion, and Taylor – last year the lone sophomore in the Mona Shores lineup and the only freshman in 2017 – has improved significantly and quickly. Taylor also carries a 3.0 GPA, with his science classes among his favorites. He has another year of high school to build on all of that success, and certainly is on his way this spring.
Coach Scott Volkmann said: “Nathan means a lot to the team, and the team means a lot to Nathan. I thought his performance (at the GMAA) was the turning point of his high school golf career. He is averaging about three shots lower on his 9-hole average and six shots lower on his 18-hole average (than as a freshman).”
Performance Point: “Going into it, I knew there was basically this one team there we had to beat that had beat us the past two years,” Taylor said of the GMAA event, referring to Reeths-Puffer. “Coach told our guys and me to just go in and play the course and don’t worry about anything else. The score will take care of itself. I just went out and played. I’ve been hitting the ball well, and I had a good score. I had no idea (my dad had won it too); I’m serious. I knew that he had a lot of great accomplishments – I did not know he had won city. I texted him and told him what I shot, and he texted me back and said we might be the first father/son duo to both win the city. That’s when I knew. I just kinda got a big smile. It’s pretty sweet to take after your dad.”
Practice pays off: “I have a younger brother (Nicholas) who will most likely be better than I am. He's in eighth grade so he'll be up next year. My brother and I spend a lot of time out on the course together. We're out there every day, after practice even. We'll go out and play nine; if we can squeeze in 18, we'll do that. My dad got me into it, my brother and I both. But golf wasn't even my main sport until this year, honestly. I've always been better at hockey. This year, the beginning of the season, we had a scrimmage and I shot 74, and I just kinda followed up from that and have been having good rounds.”
Making the jump: “I got a new driver. I got a new putter. My putting has gotten a lot better. My drive has gotten a lot better. My swing, my whole game, managing my game, just came together this year. It was actually really weird. It’s still weird to think about. Last year I had one 70s round at a JV invite, and everything else was in the 80s. This year I’ve had five or six 70s scores. Something clicked.”
State would be great: “This offseason we put in a lot of work, and so far it’s paid off. Obviously the goal is to go win states. To win Regionals would be really cool. I think we have to beat (No. 3) Rockford … you never know. We’ve got a good chance. Just to get to states would be sweet. We actually played at that course (The Fortress, home of this season’s Division 1 Final), so we’re already kinda focusing on states.”
Jordan rules: “Jordan Spieth – I think he’s always positive. He drives me to slow down. He’s really smooth with everything. (He) stays calm. I take after that, being calm and relaxed. … I think I get my competitiveness from hockey. I hate to lose at literally anything I do.”
- Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2018-19 school year, Second Half and the Michigan Army National Guard recognizes a “Performance of the Week" from among the MHSAA's 750 member high schools.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and responds as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer. This training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our nation's freedom or protect lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Past 2018-19 honorees
May 2: Ally Gaunt, New Baltimore Anchor Bay soccer - Read
April 25: Kali Heivilin, Three Rivers softball - Read
March 28: Rickea Jackson, Detroit Edison basketball - Read
March 21: Noah Wiswary, Hudsonville Unity Christian basketball - Read
March 14: Cam Peel, Spring Lake swimming - Read
March 7: Jordan Hamdan, Hudson wrestling - Read
February 28: Kevon Davenport, Detroit Catholic Central wrestling - Read
February 21: Reagan Olli, Gaylord skiing - Read
February 14: Jake Stevenson, Traverse City Bay Reps hockey - Read
February 7: Molly Davis, Midland Dow basketball - Read
January 31: Chris DeRocher, Alpena basketball - Read
January 24: Imari Blond, Flint Kearsley bowling - Read
January 17: William Dunn, Quincy basketball - Read
November 29: Dequan Finn, Detroit Martin Luther King football - Read
November 22: Paige Briggs, Lake Orion volleyball - Read
November 15: Hunter Nowak, Morrice football - Read
November 8: Jon Dougherty, Detroit Country Day soccer - Read
November 1: Jordan Stump, Camden-Frontier volleyball - Read
October 25: Danielle Staskowski, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep golf - Read
October 18: Adam Bruce, Gladstone cross country - Read
October 11: Ericka VanderLende, Rockford cross country - Read
October 4: Kobe Clark, Schoolcraft football - Read
September 27: Jonathan Kliewer, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern soccer - Read
September 20: Kiera Lasky, Bronson volleyball - Read
September 13: Judy Rector, Hanover-Horton cross country - Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Mona Shores’ Nathan Taylor lines up a putt during the Greater Muskegon Athletic Association championship tournament May 3. (Middle) Taylor watches an approach shot on the way to winning the title. (Photos courtesy of Local Sports Journal.)