Grand Blanc's Brody Medalist For Second Time, Adams Dominates Div. 1 Field
By
Tom Lang
Special for MHSAA.com
October 15, 2022
BATTLE CREEK — Grand Blanc senior Kate Brody said it was at least twice as good winning two state championships in girls golf than just having the 2020 title as a sophomore on her resume.
Coming in this season and into the postseason as the favorite – after taking third as a freshman and fourth in her junior year – Brody won her second MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 title as medalist, with a two-day, one-over-par 145. She is heading to Wisconsin to play her college golf.
Brody finished one shot ahead of East Kentwood’s Elise Fennell, and four better than Grace Wang of team champion Rochester Adams and Jessica Jolly of Rockford who tied for third. The two-day tournament was played at Gull Lake View’s Bedford Valley.
“When Elise birdied three of her last four holes, I knew on the last hole I was only one stroke ahead, so I was happy that we were playing together; not so much because of (tracking) the score but she’s one of my really good friends and I like playing with her, we get along well,” Brody said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better way for my high school career to end.
“In my opinion I think I came in as the best player in this field and I’ve worked so hard for (a championship) to not happen, so I wasn’t expecting this but it was my overall goal for sure.”
Brody was pushing the thoughts of it being her last high school tournament out of her head.
“I think it will hit me later that this was my last high school event,” Brody said, “but I think I have too much excitement to be sad about that part right now.”
Weather is almost always a factor in mid-October for MHSAA finals, but Brody said the competitors are used to it all.
“I think this weekend was about making pars, as many pars as you can and staying in play,” she said. “Staying focused mentally because you’re going to have some bad shots, but I think staying strong mentally was the biggest factor this weekend. We’re all used to playing in this weather, it happens every year at the state finals, so it’s whoever handles it the best.”
Rochester Adams somewhat surprised the field, but not themselves, with a commanding win over four-time defending champion and No. 1-ranked Northville and No. 2 ranked Brighton.
The Highlanders came in ranked No. 3 and showed what they could do, enroute to an unexpectedly-commanding win – its first in the history of Adams girls golf.
Adams led after the first day at 312, ahead of Brighton (327), Rochester (334) and Northville (342) – but Adams blew that margin wide open to win the state title by 47 strokes over the runner up Brighton (676) and by 52 over cross-town rivals Rochester (681). Northville was fourth and Rockford took fifth.
“These girls were laser-focused,” said sixth-year Adams head coach Jeff Kutschman. “They were loose, they were ready to play. They were able to come out and just play one stroke at a time. They didn’t start the round thinking about how they wanted to finish. They started the round thinking about how they want to hit the next shot. And that’s hugely important in golf.
“Brighton is outstanding, Northville is outstanding, Rochester and Rockford too, and there’s a bunch of other really good teams,” he added. “I did not expect that (margin) at all.”
Adams had three golfers finish in the top six: senior Grace Wang took T-3 (at 5-over par 149), Katie Fodale was fifth and Laura Liu was T-6.
“We set up our goals to start the season and took it one tournament at a time; we were not just thinking about the end (of the season),” Wang said. “Being able to win states is awesome as a team, and in the beginning, we knew we had the potential to do it, but I think we had to put in the work, use the mindset that we needed and work it together as a team.”
Initially, Kutschman wasn’t able to describe the program’s first state championship, but eventually said: “Just amazement, excitement, shock, and just admiration for these girls that went out there and did it.”
PHOTOS (Top) Rochester Adams' Laura Liu putts at the 2022 Division 1 Finals. (Middle) Grand Blanc's Kate Brody after her second MHSAA medalist finish. (Below) 2022 team champion Rochester Adams. (Photos by Liv Alexander.)
Cass Tech Makes History, Hopes to Inspire Future City Teams with Finals Trip
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
October 26, 2023
EAST LANSING – Players and coaches on the Detroit Cass Tech girls golf team did all they could to soak it in, but this had nothing to do with all the rain that plagued Forest Akers West during the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Girls Golf Final over the weekend.
Instead, everyone associated with the Technicians was doing all they could to soak in the experience and finish off a journey that not only illustrated how far the team had come, but also how far they want to go in the future.
It’s believed that Cass Tech sent the first high school girls golf team from the city of Detroit to qualify for an MHSAA Finals in the sport.
“It was very meaningful to make it as a team,” said Cass Tech senior Kennedy Watts. “It showed we can succeed, we are making progress and growing.”
The achievement was remarkable for a program that started just three years ago and still faces some obstacles.
The team doesn’t have a home course and has had to rely on alumni donations to purchase necessary equipment.
“It’s pretty hard for the girls to practice a bunker shot if they’ve never practiced a bunker shot before because we have no home course,” Cass Tech head coach Martin Siml said. “It’s like playing basketball without a basketball court. It’s like playing in somebody’s backyard and then showing up to compete on the basketball court.”
Cass Tech conducts practice sessions at the Royal Oak Golf Center, but was able to compete in various dual matches and tournaments throughout the year, including invitationals in Brighton, Rochester and Traverse City.
“Just not having the basic resources, but still being able to come and perform and be able to be here at states, is one of the best things,” said junior Sydney Evans.
The most memorable tournament obviously was the Regional at West Shore Golf & Country Club in Grosse Ile. The Technicians made history that day, punching their ticket to the Finals by finishing second with a score of 398. The top three teams at Regional events qualify.
From there, it was a whirlwind of preparation leading up to last weekend’s trip to East Lansing.
When word of the team’s accomplishment got out, the Detroit News and Detroit Free Press were among media to feature the team.
Retired Detroit Lions wide receiver and Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Calvin Johnson even showed up at a practice to offer congratulations and support.
At the Final, Cass Tech finished 17th behind Watts, Evans, sophomore Sienna Hawkins, senior Kalista Bennett and junior Nyla Joseph.
More important than competing at the Final was the bar the team set going forward by simply being there.
Not only does the program hope future teams qualifying becomes the norm, but that other programs in the city and Detroit Public School League will be inspired.
“I think the girls coming after us, they are going to have that legacy to go behind,” Evans said. “It’s something to strive for as well.”
Siml for one doesn’t shy away from having lofty ambitions for the future.
“I told them I want to start a dynasty,” Siml said. “That’s my goal. At Cass Tech, we have dynasties. We have basketball, we have football. We try to make dynasties.”
Keith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties
PHOTO The Detroit Cass Tech girls golf team celebrates qualifying for the MHSAA Final from its LPD1 Regional. (Middle) The Technicians' Nyla Joseph putts during the Final. (Top photo courtesy of Faye Watts. Middle photo by High School Sports Scene.)