Ark Valley News - Promising season awaits Hornet golfers

Front from left: Riley Johnson, Cason Berschauer, Reed Pierce, Joseph Sears, Zach Williams. Back from left: Coach Mike McCormick, Peyton Leinen, Sam Weldon, Tyler Merriman, Dayne Hickey, Collin Jensen.

Promising season awaits Hornet golfers
By David Dinell
Last Updated: March 31, 2016

With a full roster of eager players, Valley Center High School golf coach Mike McCormick is looking at a solid performance this season.

Last year was a rebuilding one with mixed results and with the loss of only one player, Logan Burks, to graduation, McCormick sees a lot of potential with this edition of seasoned Hornets.

McCormick also has been impressed with the number of boys turning out for the team.

He had 18 candidates to select from during tryouts, which took place right before spring break, and selected 10. It was a pretty clear cut, too, he said.

He would have liked to have had a couple more players, but is limited to 10 at Sand Creek Station, where the team practices.

That changes next season, when the new Valley Center course is open. The players had been practicing during favorable weather days in February, so they weren't rusty, he said.

They also have their game down, which helps, McCormick said.

"Last season, we had to spend a lot of time teaching form," he said. "This year, the quality is much better. They're a lot more fundamentally sound from top to bottom. We had to emphasize a lot of fundamentals last year."

They're also more closely matched with only about 10 shots separating the 10 players.

Of course, there's a lot to work on, and McCormick doesn't want to put too much pressure on them early, especially the younger players, but he's confident they'll rise to the competitive level they'll need to be.

This year's seniors are Collin Jensen and Joey Sears. Juniors are Dayne Hickey, Riley Johnson, Tyler Merriman, Sam Weldon and Zach Williams. Sophomores are Peyton Leinen, Reed Pierce and Cason Berschauer.

With only two seniors, it's a young team, but one with a solid core to build on, McCormick said. McCormick also is expecting a lot from Pierce, who played last year as a freshman, along with Berschauer and Williams.

"I think those three will give us a nice foundation," he said.

McCormick said he's looking forward to what he calls "steady golf," or a group of his four top players having consistent, close scores. He believes they can do that and be in the 80 to 85 range on a regular basis.

The varsity season kicks off April 4 against Andover at Crestview Country Club and, for those who qualify, the state championships will be May 23 at a site yet to be selected.

There are six meets before the league championships, which will be hosted by Valley Center at Hesston and Sand Creek Station courses.

There also are six junior varsity meets. The first one is April 7 against Augusta at Augusta and the season winds up May 3 against Newton at Fox Ridge.

McCormick likes the depth this team has, which it will need as it's in a tough Class 5A. It's even more competitive than 6A, he said.

"It's very competitive," he said. "We play with at least with at least one or two state champions."

Of course, the kick off to any new season is usually full of hope, but given the experience and work ethic of this season's Hornet golfers, McCormick sees much progress during the eight-week season.

"We have to find our groove, but we will over the course of the year," he said. "It'll be a fun year."