Ark Valley News - Golf team to feature several new players this season

Golf — Front from left: Lizzie Pierce, Alyssa Turner, Edie Reese, Kaci Kipp, Allie Johnson. Back row: Assistant coach Chris Edwards, Abbi Wolf, Brianna Dosse, Elana Schmelzle, Mati Newman, Mallory Fiebich, coach Mike McCormick.

Golf team to feature several new players this season
By Taylor Messick
Last Updated: August 25, 2017

A young Valley Center High School girls' golf team features just one senior and two juniors. The remainder includes sophomores and freshmen.

“The team has a very low level of experience overall," said head coach Mike McCormick. “We graduated a lot of kids last year. Hopefully this team can grow. They're good kids and they're athletic, but they've never played the game. Seven out of 10 have never picked up a golf club. There will be a lot of teaching; I want them to feel confident before they go out into a competitive tournament."

McCormick says one of the main goals is to make sure the team sport is fun. He said they have positive attitudes, which help the learning process.

“One thing that's a little different about the girls than the boys is that they're very team oriented," said McCormick. “They're there to make memories and have fun. They ask questions, and it's easy for them to build chemistry with each other."

McCormick said that with such a young team he has to be creative. He is essentially teaching a brand new sport to some of the girls, so he tries to make the game relatable to other activities.

“What you do on the first day is find out what they've played," he said. “If they've played sports, that means they can relate to body positions, postures and angles. There are a lot of things in golf that are very comparable with other sports. You can kind of tap into their athleticism that way."

The girls will open the season Aug. 31 at Augusta. They host a varsity tournament at Sand Creek Station in Newton on Sep. 12. They will host a JV tournament at Valley Point on Sep. 25.