Vanitvelt Returns to Lead Loaded Powers

By Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com

May 17, 2017

Blaise Vanitvelt has been a dominant force on the golf course this season.

But more importantly, the Flint Powers Catholic senior is enjoying playing with his younger brother and their friends – who are carding great scores of their own.

“Our starting five, we’ve all grown up playing together,” Vanitvelt said. “I just feel good when I’m out there playing. I’m happy with how the whole team is playing, really.”

Vanitvelt, who spent his junior year at Bishop’s Gate Golf Academy in central Florida, was 9-under par through three Saginaw Valley League tournaments, with scores of 69, 71 and 67. He’s leading a team that is frequently shooting in the low 300s, or better.

“We just posted a 299 at Currie Golf Course up in Midland – it’s a very challenging course,” Powers coach Bob Beach said. “I have a very good team this year.”

On the night Powers shot its 299, Vanitvelt led the way with his 67, which tied the best round of his life. His brother Ty, a freshman, and Zack Hopkins each shot 75s for Powers, while Andrew Hayward added an 82. Powers has had several other players figure into the scoring this season, including Joe Coriasso, who is headed to Mott Community College to play next season and was the medalist in the Genesee County Tournament.

Blaise Vanitvelt could see this coming. He and his teammates have put in a lot of time on the course after their regular practices. It’s something that’s been happening for several years.

“We’re all members at Warwick Hills in Grand Blanc; it’s awesome,” Vanitvelt said. “Every day we go to practice for an hour, then we’ll go to Warwick, eat, and practice more. It’s a good practice course. It kind of tests a lot of different stuff for us. The practice facility is super nice there, and the guys from the Grand Blanc team are always there.

“I’ve always been looking forward to this. We go down to Kentucky to play in tournaments together. It’s nice to be on the same team.”

Being a part of this team is a major reason Vanitvelt – who was the No. 1 golfer for Powers as a freshman and sophomore – came back from Florida. It was something he advertised as the plan all along, even if he wasn’t always 100 percent sure of it.

“I told my girlfriend and told my teammates that I was coming back for my senior year,” he said. “Me and my parents had talked about it, and decided that if the academy and me agree that I need to stay, I would.

“But I wanted to be home with family for my senior year.”

A talk with his academy coaches helped validate the decision, and Vanitvelt said he returned to Michigan with a strong summer on the course. It was strong enough that Eastern Michigan University offered him a scholarship. He committed to the Eagles in the fall.

Beach said it was clear that Vanitvelt had improved when he returned, and he wasn’t surprised by it. Not just because of what the golf academy offered in terms of skill building, but because of Vanitvelt’s ability and work ethic.

“A lot of it is heart and desire -- work ethic,” Beach said. “That’s where Blaise excels. He wants to get better, he wants to be the best he can be. Blaise does have the heart for it. He has the desire, and he’s willing to work for it. He’s worked extremely hard.”

When he came back, Vanitvelt was able to step right back into a leadership role for the Chargers, and he did so not only with an improved game, but also some new learning methods to share with his teammates.

“I always try to help them out with stuff,” Vanitvelt said. “When we go to practice, I talk with coach, and we play a lot of games -- working on mental games and handling pressure. When we go back to Warwick, we always play against each other, and I try to incorporate high pressure games as much as I can. I help my brother out a ton. He does listen to me – sometimes. That’s why I was excited to come back.

“I wasn’t trying to be bossy or anything. We all can play golf on our own, and if I can help out I will. I’m always rooting for them.”

Ty Vanitvelt agreed that his brother has leant a helping hand. But mostly, he’s just happy to have him back.

“It’s really fun playing with him, especially with how good he’s playing,” Ty Vanitvelt said. “High school is different than any other type of golf, so to have my brother there, it helps a lot. When he went to school last year, he learned a lot about golf and his swing. If I’m not hitting it good, I’ll go to him. He’s very informative if I have a question. Very helpful.”

As the postseason approaches, the Chargers have high hopes but know they’ll have to be at the absolute top of their game. They moved up to Division 2 this season, and are in a Regional with St. Johns, East Lansing and DeWitt, the top three placers at the 2016 Division 2 Final. To even get to the final weekend Powers will have to finish above at least one of those teams at The Emerald Golf Course on May 31.

“We always talk about being state champs, but if we all play like we know we can play, it’s going to be hard to beat us,” Blaise Vanitvelt said. “I know our team can put up a good number and threaten them. I think we’re getting to the point, we’ve shot in the low 300s a good number of times, that I think we should be able to contend if we all play as well as we can.”

Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.

PHOTOS: (Top) Flint Powers’ Blaise Vanitvelt tees off. (Middle) Vanitvelt leads the No. 4-ranked team in Lower Peninsula Division 2. (Photos courtesy of Blaise Vanitvelt.)

Veteran Comets Prepping for Title Run

By Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com

March 27, 2018

KALAMAZOO – Golf, barbeque and honoring Martin Luther King Jr. are on the agenda for Kalamazoo Christian’s boys golf team during spring break.

The six varsity players, coach Brian Seifert and their families are headed to Memphis next week.

“We plan to take in a couple of golf courses down there and also have the opportunity to play the TPC Southwind that hosts the FEDEX St. Jude Classic, so we’re excited about that,” Seifert said.

“We’re going to be at the Martin Luther King Jr. 50th anniversary of his assassination on the actual day, April 4, so it’s a little bit of an inspiration trip along with the golf to get us focused for a big run on the year.

“We’ll be down there to play some golf and eat some barbeque.”

Three of the Comets, who as a team finished third at the Lower Peninsula Division 4 Final last year, had a bit of a delay in starting this season.

They were part of the K-Christian basketball team that lost in the Class D Quarterfinals last Tuesday.

While the rest of the golfers were already practicing, seniors Colin Sikkenga and John Cramer plus junior Ben Cramer did not pick up the clubs until Wednesday.

“The speeds are a lot different,” John Cramer said of the two sports. “After a little bit, you start to get used to golf again. The first week and a half or so, it’s a little tough to make that transition.”

Next sport, new home

Once they make that transition, the team will start the journey to what it hopes is another shot at an MHSAA title.

“It’s tough to win,” Sikkenga said. “It’s just two days of 18 holes. You’ve just got to get really hot those two days.

“That’s what it comes down to. Anyone can really win it. It just depends on how well you play those two days.”

Last season’s three other varsity golfers also are back: senior Derek Block and juniors Elijah Devries and Josh Bouma.

Although they lost their former home course when Thornapple Creek Golf Club closed last year, they moved to a closer one: Kalamazoo Country Club.

“That is pretty awesome,” said Sikkenga, a finalist for the coaches association’s Mr. Golf Award last year. “I’m excited. Hackett (Catholic Prep) would do their invite there, and I’ve done that since freshman year.”

The country club has not been home to a high school team in 40 years, according to Seifert.

“After 40 years, they said maybe this is the year to do it, and our ‘ask’ was at the right time,” he said. “It’s a matter of timing.”

Two of the golfers, Ben Cramer and Bouma, both caddy there in the summer and know the course layout very well.

“That will help,” Cramer said. “But most of us on the team have played the course quite a few times.”

Valuable experiences

Sikkenga and the Cramer brothers all started swinging the clubs at a very young age, but in different ways.

Sikkenga’s parents do not play golf, while dad Rick Cramer had a membership at Thornapple and started his sons in the sport. 

“I had the Little Tike’s blue plastic club and I just started hitting balls,” Sikkenga said. “I loved to hit the ball really far. I think that’s why I liked it so much.”

Hitting the long ball is just one asset that put the scratch golfer on varsity all four years.

“The thing about Colin that is good for everybody else in his leadership is that he is so patient playing golf,” Seifert said of his senior captain. “That’s a real important asset to have in golf because it just takes so long to get around, and you get groups that get stacked up on top of each other. 

“Nothing rattles him. That’s a real bonus when you’re playing golf.”

Sikkenga will attend Oakland University on a golf scholarship with an eye on a pro career.

“My goal since I’ve been little has been to play professionally,” he said. “It’s definitely a goal that is not easy by any stretch of the imagination.”

Oakland golf coach Nick Pumford talked about Sikkenga on the college’s web site.

"Colin brings a lot of national exposure and experience to our program,” he said. “Not only has Colin tested his game against the best players in the country, he's had success doing so.

“I'm looking forward to Colin carrying over that success and experience into our program next season.”

Besides playing their opponents, the Cramers also compete against each other.

“Oh yeah, there’s always a competition with my brother,” John Cramer said. “We always compare scores after the round. I usually win.”

But when a threesome includes their dad, “We’re pretty competitive because we’re all pretty much around the same kind of scoring level,” Ben Cramer said. 

“It’s all fun, but our dad usually wins. He’s better than both of us.”

Let the fun begin

While the brothers share camaraderie on the course, one thing they do not share is their clubs.

“His are too short for me,” the 6-foot-5 Ben Cramer said. “(John) is 5-7.”

Seifert calls John Cramer the Magic Man.

“He can get up and down from spaces that most people can’t,” the coach said. “He likes to scramble when he plays golf. It’s not uncommon for him to run together five, six long putts in a row for par or birdie just to keep the round going.

“Golf’s a matter of streaks sometimes. You get on a roll, and he can find those sometimes and put quality rounds together.”

It is also a mental game, Ben Cramer said.

“You have to be focused all the time when you’re around the ball. You have to focus on how far you’re hitting, what the wind’s doing.”

Cramer describes himself as the jokester of the team.

“I joke around a lot,” he said. “I lighten the mood. I’m never really sad.”

Seifert agreed.

“Ben carries us well with his humor,” he said. “The whole team is a load of fun to be with. For him, he’s so quiet and unassuming that you would never know if he’s having a good round or a bad round. It’s kind of like calling him patient. 

“He doesn’t get down on himself. I think that’s where I noticed him being the most improved last year. He got better with each shot. Even if he did hit a bad shot, the next one was right on the money.”

None of the three boys have had hole-in-one, but their coach, who is a pastor at Milwood Community Church, has had two.

“My mom taught me to play golf when I was 5, and I haven’t stopped since,” said Seifert, who grew up outside of Seattle.

“For a number of years I managed a golf resort, so I played a lot of golf that way.”

In addition to his two aces, “I also had a double eagle, an albatross,” he said. “I’ll take that.

“Golf’s meant to be having fun, and it’s hard to score when you’re not having fun. If you’re not enjoying it, there’s no point doing it.”

Pam Shebest served as a sportswriter at the Kalamazoo Gazette from 1985-2009 after 11 years part-time with the Gazette while teaching French and English at White Pigeon High School. She can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Calhoun, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.

PHOTOS: (Top) Kalamazoo Christian’s Ben Cramer lines up a putt. (Middle top) Clockwise from top left: Kalamazoo Christian coach Brian Seifert, senior Colin Sikkenga, senior John Cramer and junior Ben Cramer. (Middle) Seifert, left, and Sikkenga survey the scene during play last season. (Below) John Cramer putts last spring. (Action photos by Daniel J. Cooke [top two] and Cheryl TenBrink, head shots by Pam Shebest.)