Iron Mountain Atones, Emeralds Ace Medals
June 2, 2016
By Dennis Grall
Special for Second Half
NORWAY – The Iron Mountain girls golf team found solid incentive and excellent motivation and turned that into an Upper Peninsula championship Thursday.
The Mountaineers atoned for a third-place finish a week earlier in the Mid-Peninsula Conference tournament, also held here at Oak Crest Golf Club, to overcome M-PC champion Manistique for the MHSAA Upper Peninsula Division 2 title title. IM finished at 490, a dozen strokes ahead of Manistique, which slid back to third.
Iron River West Iron County finished second in the five-team field with 497.
A week earlier Manistique shot 460 while IM had 499. Ishpeming Westwood, the M-PC runner-up, competed in the Division 1 Final on Thursday in Ishpeming.
"Each one of them improved their game from the Mid-Pen Conference," said IM coach Bucky Johnson. "We played a little better and a few of their (Manistique) girls didn't play as good."
Manistique coach Deb Taylor agreed, adding "our girls just didn't play up to their potential today."
Johnson said he discussed his team's prospects with the girls leading up to the U.P. Finals. "We have been chasing Manistique all year. I told them if we keep getting better we will have the opportunity to win the championship," he said.
The girls responded, which did not surprise Johnson because they have participated in all the team practices and meets all season. "Their consistency paid off; they were persistent," he said.
IM succeeded with three juniors (Lexi Verrette, Libby Brown and Megan Milliron), sophomore Miranda Julian and freshman Jenna Santini. Milliron led the Mountaineers with a 53-60 - 113.
"If each girl improved their score by five to seven strokes, I knew we would have a legitimate chance of winning," said Johnson. "All year I thought we would have a chance."
One member of the Emeralds who did play well was senior Rachel Ryan, who earned medalist honors with a 105 (52-53). "She has been here four years and has been steady," said Taylor.
Ryan credits her father, Manistique athletic director Rob Ryan (one of the better men's golfers in the Upper Peninsula), for getting into position to take the top spot.
"He never pushed me to play, but he definitely encouraged me to play," she said. "I learned everything I know from him."
Ryan kept pushing forward throughout her round, which helped her maintain poise when she had some poor shots. "I try not to get upset; that would never help," she said. "I try to stay pretty mentally stable. I try to stay calm and collected."
That solid thought process also came in handy when she began to rely on her "go-to" 3-wood for many tee shots. "I started making safer choices," she said of declining to hit driver.
She had problems putting, agreeing the greens were notably slower than at her home course, Manistique Indian Lake, which is known for its slippery putting surfaces. Faced with the slower greens, she said, "I stood over the ball and told myself to hit it to the back of the hole.
"I knew if I played my best I would have a chance (to medal). I just tried to relax and have fun. This is my last one ever (as a high school golfer)."
PHOTOS: (Top) Rachel Ryan of Manistique watches her tee shot on No. 4 on Thursday at Norway's Oak Crest Golf Club during the Upper Peninsula Division 2 golf tournament. Ryan was medalist with a 105. (Middle) Iron Mountain won the team championship; the team includes, from left, coach Bucky Johnson, Libby Brown, Miranda Julian, Lexi Verrette, Jana Santini and Megan Milliron. (Photos by Denny Grall.)
Lumen Christi Builds a Champion, Greenhills Sophomore Repeats
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
October 15, 2022
ALLENDALE — There's no doubt that after 50 years of coaching, David Swartout can spin an interesting golf story or two. But his latest yarn might rank as one of the strangest.
Four years ago Swartout's Jackson Lumen Christi girls golf team was recruiting anyone who seemed to have an interest in the sport. What he never would have guessed was that diverse mix of multi-sport athletes would eventually earn a state championship.
But that's exactly the case after Lumen Christi shot a 688 to win Saturday's MHSAA Division 4 Finals at a blustery The Meadows at Grand Valley State.
Four years ago the program's only two returning letter winners began recruiting anyone who showed a interest in picking up a club. They wound up finding seven takers and the resulting nine seniors capped what Swartout can only describe as a "phenomenal."
The Titans wound up winning six of nine tournaments this season (finishing second in the other three), won their conference and last week's regional by 13 strokes. Lumen Christi won the MHSAA Finals by 23 strokes over runner-up Adrian Lenawee Christian.
Swartout can only marvel at how the program went from scrounging for players to his 17th state title in coaching both girls and boys.
"To go from there to a state title is phenomenal," said Swartout, who has coached two girls teams to titles. "The last three years we've improved by 100 shots. That's unheard of. I've never ever seen anything like that in all the teams I've had."
How did the program accomplish it? Swartout cites as example senior Ashley Hilderley, who hurt her knee playing volleyball on Wednesday and was told by doctors the only way she could participate in the state meet was if she didn't have to walk the course.
"So she limped around for two days," Swartout said of Hilderley, who finished in a tie for ninth with a 167.
Anna McClure led Lumen Christi with a 163 which put her in the sixth spot overall.
Ann Arbor Greenhills' Mia Melendez won the meet with a 149. Logan Bentley of Columbia Central was second with a 150, Grace Slocum of Traverse City St. Francis was third with a 151 while Montague had the next two placers in Mackenzie Goudreau (159) and Natalie Kellogg (162).
Hilderley said the Titans, who were the top-ranked team going into the meet, didn't let lofty expectations get in the way of performance.
"We don't think of ourselves as individuals. We're very much a team," she said. "If anyone ever has a bad day, someone will step up. We trust each other."
Hilderley said the team never considered giving in to pressure.
"I'd rather have people say we're good rather than say you aren't any good," she said.
Swartout won't go out on a limb and call this the best team he's ever coached. But there is one trait he points to in explaining the remarkable success. He said he'll see several of the kids at the driving range on his way home after practice.
"It's hard to do that after having so many teams, but this is one of my most special. I'll say that," he said. "To put in the kind of effort they put in makes them special. They work so hard, it's phenomenal."
Melendez won last year's state meet as a freshman. She said there's little doubt in the old adage that it's always harder to win the second time.
"It was. It's hard to live up to (last year's) title and it was a much different course this year," she said. "All around, I had to play better,"
Melendez finishes off an unbeaten season, including a regional title and the top spot going into Saturday.
"There was definitely a lot of pressure, but I committed myself to staying calm and just fighting hard," she said.
PHOTOS (Top) Sophomore Mia Melendez tees off at the 2022 MHSAA Division 4 Girls Golf Finals. (Middle) Jackson Lumen Christi wins the 2022 Division 4 team title. (Photos by Greg Chrapek.)