By From staff reports
newsroom@dailystandard.com Both the Western Buckeye League and Midwest Athletic Conference will be putting more emphasis on dual match records balanced with the results from the league tournaments at the end of the season to decide league championships.
This year, the MAC will introduce girls golf as a championship sport with all but two teams fielding girls teams. The girls overview will run on Thursday.
Here is a look at the boys teams around the Grand Lake area:
CELINA -- The Bulldogs got off to a strong start, winning the Mercer County team tournament title and posting a second-place showing at invites at The Fox's Den and at Defiance.
Coach Keith VanDeventer has been happy with the improvement his team has shown this season after going 2-7 in the WBL duals last season and finishing seventh overall after a sixth-place showing at the league tourney. The Bulldogs will look to their experience to get through the season. WBL first-teamer Paul VanDeventer, son of the coach, earned top-five honors at the county meet and will look to improve. Scott Luthman was honorable mention all-WBL at the league meet and has been solid this season.
The Bulldogs are getting some help from Ryan Moran, who shot a 74 to win the county title and was fifth at last week's Fox's Den get-together. Patrick Bailey also earned second place at the county with Darren Fleck returning to help lead the team.
With the league opener against St. Marys this week, and upcoming battles with WBL powers Van Wert and Bath, the Bulldogs are looking for a move back to the top of the WBL.
COLDWATER -- Jack Mescher's team had solid beginnings this season, placing third at the county meet and finishing in the pack at the Fox's Den.
Among the solid players up top for the Cavs is Kurt Riethman, who took fifth at the county meet and shot a 79 last Friday. Aaron Evers took two strokes off his county score of 88 to finish at 86 in the 18-hole invite. Seth Kahle shot 82 at the county meet and dropped back to 81 last Friday.
Josh Obringer and Ryan Buening round out the top five for the Cavaliers and Nate Bladen has been looking to move up in the varsity six for meets.
FORT RECOVERY -- Brad Evers' team started out with a rough outing at the county meet, shooting a 400.
Aaron Kahlig posted the low score for the Tribe at that tournament with a 90 with Matt Brunswick's 98 the only other score under triple digits.
Evers will have a number of players to work with after tryouts were needed to get down to a 13-player roster for varsity and junior varsity. With the competition for spots on the varsity being very tight the Indians have a chance to cut down on strokes as the season goes along.
MARION LOCAL -- The Flyers finished fourth at the county meet and cut their score by seven at the Fox's Den last Friday.
Coach Chris Obringer, taking over for longtime coach Ron Hertel, has had different players come up with low-man honors at the two big meets last week.
Jordan Moeller led the Flyers (Continued from page 1B)
at the County with a round of 82 while Greg Hartings carded an 86 at the Celina Invite on Friday.
After having four players shoot between 95 and 100 at the County meet, held at The Fox's Den last Tuesday, the Flyers had just one player over 92 three days later.
The Flyers finished 10th at the MAC last season. With experienced golfers back, the team has a good chance to move up after solid showings to start the season.
MINSTER -- As head coach Aaron Homan begins his third season at the helm of the Minster boy's golf program, he has set his expectations high for the 2005 campaign. With a solid roster from top to bottom, Homan's Wildcats are shooting the for MAC championship and beyond.
Juniors Evan Lee and Jimmy Stechschulte give Minster a pair of underclassmen who could very well be two of the team's top three golfers as the season gets under way. Stechschulte won the Auglaize County golf title with while Lee has been solid this season.
Senior Adam Borges lost in a playoff at the Cardinal Invite after shooting a 72. Fellow seniors Matt Purpus, Lyle Sanvido and Max Phlipot are are also solid locks for the top six golfers on the team.
The Wildcats are a solid contender to end Versailles's two-year reign as MAC champions.
NEW BREMEN -- The Cardinals will look to improve on the sixth-place showing at the MAC meet last season. The Cardinals lost district qualifier Josh Richardson to graduation.
Zac Hemmelgarn paced the Cardinals in the own invite with an 80 with Brian Schwartz finishing at 81. Alex Bergman and Chris Williams are also solid players in the top five.
NEW KNOXVILLE -- New coach Kay Webb has plenty of youth on her team. Only two seniors make up the roster to go with four sophomores and four freshman rounding out the roster.
Seniors Dustan Kruse and Kurt Brown will look to lead the team this season as the younger players get more experience.
Sophomores Tony Meyer and Sam Sanders will also look to play while freshmen Derek Dicke and Caleb Allen look to play the fifth and sixth spots in the rotation.
PARKWAY -- The Panthers look to have plenty of solid players coming back this season to make a run on the course.
Juniors Trevor Krogman and Ross Black are solid as the number one and two golfer after having a successful summer playing in junior golf tournaments, including invites to the Ohio Golf Course Owners Association's state tournament.
Seniors Colby Heiser and Dylan Jutte are also veteran golfers coming back. Fellow senior Rikki Covarrubias had a strong summer in improving his game and earning a spot in the top six. Junior Eric Shrider also will look to stay on the varsity lineup.
The junior varsity season will be a good look at what coach Eric Stachler will have down the road. Six freshmen came out this season to go with a pair of sophomores. With three seniors and two juniors on the roster this year, the way the young players pick up will be a key if the Panthers look to improve on the season.
ST. HENRY -- Charlie Maier's group has been solid since the veteran area coach, who has a MAC title in coaching Coldwater in 1994. The Redskins won three straight titles from 1995 to 1997 and has been the regular battlers at the top of the MAC since.
State qualifier Matt Dippold graduated in the spring, but Maier has a solid lineup. Jay Woeste, the 2004 County champ, returns strong in placing third at this year's County meet.
Robby Brunswick in the lone senior with experience with Brian Knapke making the team this season.
Junior Jon Ranly played the varsity in all three big invites the Redskins played in last week -- The Lancer Invitational was the other -- and had decent outings in all three.
Sophomores Andy Stout, Eric Stout and Ryan Wehrkamp -- the County jayvee champ -- are pushing to make the varsity lineup.
ST. MARYS -- The big change for the Roughriders this season is the loss of longtime coach Denny Vogel, who did not return this season.
Kurt Kuffner takes over a team the is looking to come back from a ninth-place league finish in 2004.
Michael Schmitmeyer and Trent Paulus are the key returnees from last season's team. Newcomers to the varsity this season include Dex and Trey Yelton and Alex Spencer. Adam Kuffner will also look to stay on the varsity.
VERSAILLES -- The defending MAC champs are coming off placing ninth at the state Division II meet last season. Graduation, though, took a big hit on Dr. Pete DiSalvo's team.
MAC player of the year Devin Crisman and veteran Max Frey both graduated.
Ryan Schlater is the only veteran returnee this season. Jordan Schlater, Keith Hemmelgarn, Cody Bruns, Beau Hemmelgarn and Treg Hutchinson have played the varsity in invites this season and will look to help the team build up as the season goes along. |
