Bobcats, Portagers and Sabers all post match medalists at D jamboree

MCC & Onekama win matches

By DYLAN SAVELA Manistee News Advocate Sports Writer

ONEKAMA — Brethren, Manistee Catholic Central and Onekama all fielded a match medalist at the West Michigan D League Jamboree at the Heathlands golf course Tuesday.

Brethren’s Roger Mullet, MCC’s Zack Bialik and Onekama’s Jake Matthews all medaled in their respective matches.

Mullet shot a 39 in the Bobcats’ (2-2) 181-176 loss to Mason County Eastern, followed by Patrick Spalding’s 41, Dillon VanderBie’s 50, and Dillon Arlt’s 51.

“I was happy to see we made some improvement from our last time,” Bobcats’ coach Tom Anderson said. “But, we still need our middle group of team members to shoot down in the 40s some place. We lost by five strokes today, so if we can drop some of those kids to the 40s, then we should be getting closer to where we want to be.”

The event’s host Onekama (7-1, 2-1) also captured a victory, beating Walkerville 165-220.

Jake Matthews medaled with a 39 and was followed by Levi Capper’s 40, Drew Griswold’s 41 and Skyler Kimpel’s 45.

The Portagers’ Brenner Johnson finished with a 44 but was disqualified for using a range finder, which is not allowed in competition.

“Jake (Matthews) turned in a match score that he’s been looking to shoot all season long,” Portagers coach Mary Jo Zadow said. “We’re happy that he was able to finally put his game together.

“It appeared (the jamboree) ran pretty fluidly,” Zadow added. “We always appreciate the fact that The Heathlands are so accommodating.”

The Sabers (8-5), who shot a 168, won by default against Pentwater who was only able to field three golfers. Bialik medaled by matching his season-low 38.

The Sabers’ Nick Kolanowski shot a 40, Zach Luomala shot 43, and Nolan Gunia shot a 47. “It was a good match for us,” MCC coach Pete Solwold said. “We’re still learning, still trying, but we had a nice night.”

Alex Welch, Sean Lowe and Mike Mastrianni finished the back nine before the photographer could capture a picture of them during play. Upon completion of their nine holes of play, they went straight to the driving range to work on further improving their golf game. They are shown here retrieving golf balls on the range. Sean shot a personal best of 42 and Alex a personal best of 43. Mike, the most inexperienced of the three, worked to keep his score in the 50’s.

Mike Swanson and Paul Cunningham discuss their play with Coach Zadow as Sean Lowe approaches to join in the conversation. They are gathered near the driving range after the conclusion of their play while awaiting the arrival of teammates who are still out on the course. The area is a popular gathering location for players who wish to work on their game skills following competitive play.

Brenner Johnson strokes a long putt for birdie on the first hole at the Heathlands during a WMD Conference Jamboree. Onekama played against Walkerville, while Manistee Catholic took on Pentwater and Mason County Eastern battled Brethren/
Bear Lake. Brenner put the ball within 5 feet and snuck his putt into the side of the cup for par on the following stroke.

Jake Matthews executes a practice swing in preparation for his tee shot off the 3^rd hole at the Heathlands. Notice the nice extension and head positioning as he begins his upswing. Jake hit his tee shot nicely down the middle of the fairway, played his second shot up near the green, chipped on and two-putted for his par after previously posting a birdie on the second hole. Jake went on to shoot a score of 39 to earn match medalist honors for the first time this season.

Derek Hobart, one of our team managers, makes a run at saving his par on the 17^th hole at the Heathlands after landing his tee shot a bit off course in the deep rough. Take notice of the full turn Derek has made in an effort to get all he can put on the ball in order to propel it out of the heather and onto the green. Derek’s efforts proved positive as he went on to get his par.

Drew Griswold demonstrates his method of properly aligning himself in preparation for his approach shot to the 8^th green. Drew went on to par the hole and post a match score of 41. Apparently Drew’s method of checking his alignment works well – something all golfers should do more often during their game to make certain they are on their intended line of approach to the green.

Quinn Matthews, the other team manager, finds himself in the same thick heather fellow manager, Derek Hobart, found himself. Notice the patch of heather hanging on the head of Quinn’s iron as Quinn attempts to complete his follow-through. Quinn went on to bogey the hole after doing well to get out of the heather to a position just off the back of the green.

Paul Cunningham retrieves Mike Swanson’s golf ball from the water hazard in front of the 18^th green. Paul found Mike’s golf ball just barely in the water hazard and is shown handing it back to Mike. The guys played the back nine of the Heathlands with a shooter from Mason County Eastern.

Skyler Kimpel stops to give a grin after leaving the 7^th green at the Heathlands. Skyler was the official scorer for his foursome. You see him with scorecard in one hand and pencil in the other ready to record scores taken on the 7^th hole when the group reaches the 8^th tee.

Text by Coach Zadow

Levi Capper stands overlooking his putt on the 6^th green assessing the line he wants the ball to travel on its route to the cup. He is putting these days with a putter loaned to him by his coach after his own putter broke into 2 pieces during practice. Levi doesn’t seem to be too adversely affected by the change as he continues to maintain a scoring average of 40.5 in conference play.

Cody Sievert played one of his best rounds of the season, shooting a score of 49 for the match and was not pictured. Apparently, Cody was able to cruise the Heathlands under the “camera radar.” Maybe, picturing Cody while he attempts to go about his business during a match is annoying him. Future evaluation will have to be determined!

Golf Schedule 2009
Date: May 5, 2009
Photos on this page by Coach Zadow and Mrs. Griswold

All Sports at Onekama 2008-2009
Onekama High School 2008-2009