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| Dawn Svenkeson |
Last spring sophomore Dawn Svenkeson didn't even know if Calvin would
be fielding a golf team when she returned for fall semester. She was the
only returning player as some had graduated and others had simply thrown
in the towel. Nine months later, Svenkeson smiles at the former notion
that there would be no women's golf team, and takes heart in the Knight's
fourth-place MIAA finish this fall.
Not only is it a severe turnaround from 2001, when Calvin finished in
seventh place, it is also the best finish for the Knights since their
third-place finish in 1995. Previously, the women's golf team has struggled
recording a DNF in 1997, eighth place in 1998, ninth place in 1999, and
back-to-back seventh place finishes in 2000 and 2001.
In a game that requires such tough mental stamina, and typically only
rewards seasoned veterans the Calvin women's golf team thrived. But how?
With the nucleus of the team being a sophomore, and a first-year head
coach in Jerry Bergsma, the odds seemed stacked against them.
According to Bergsma the results can directly be attributed to the hard
work put in during practice. "These girls worked very hard in practice,
both on their golf games and also on their mental toughness."
Bergsma knew coming in that the season wasn't going to be a cakewalk.
"I didn't want to sugarcoat anything. I didn't want to give the girls
anything to compare themselves to, so I just told them to play against
the golf course and let the chips fall where they may. The fourth-place
finish is a big step for Calvin, and we will work hard in the off-season
to continue to improve."
To win the league championship in women's golf, one must perform very
well at the MIAA championships, hosted by a different school each year.
It is the cumulative score of the two-day 36-hole event that stands up
as your final team score in the league standings. Leading up to the MIAA
championships are three 18-hole MIAA jamborees, which mean nothing to
the team scores, but everything to the individual standings. The final
individual standings are an average of the five 18-hole events played
(two rounds at the MIAA championships and three rounds at the MIAA jamborees).
Calvin's final team score of 804 on October 4 and 5 at the Zollner Golf
Club in Angola, Ind., was good enough to place in front of fifth place
Olivet (815), and behind third place Albion (722). Calvin was led by Svenkeson
who fired a 180 for the weekend highlighted by an 88 in Saturday's competition.
Her score also tied her for the tenth-best round on the weekend. Freshman
Annie Huizenga was the Knight's second best finisher, turning in a score
of 191.
Svenkeson, who dropped 13 strokes from her opening round score in the
championship round, said the team helped make her better. "We all
played because we loved the game. This is the first golf team that I have
been on that the players actually wanted to practice and recognized that
they needed to improve."
The only question about next year's team, with most of the team returning,
is how much better they can get. |
