The Saline Reporter
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Spring Sports Blossom
Golfers to defend state title
By Jerry Hinnen, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: April 3, 2008
They're back.
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After an 18-month competitive layoff caused by the 2007 Michigan High School Athletic Association season switch, the Saline boys' golf team is poised to begin at last the defense of their 2006 state championship, the program's first.
Weather permitting, the Hornets will open their new season with a dual Wednesday at Southeastern Conference foe Chelsea.
"It has been a long, long time — it really has," said Saline head coach Carol Melcher. "But they've always been so committed to the team and committed to improving. They're ready. We just need one break in the weather, and we'll be ready to go."
With three of the five starters back from the team that won the previous Division 1 title by a whopping 23 strokes — including senior captain Matt Paterini and 2006 All-State individual junior Phil Gieseker — Saline will likely enter 2008 as a favorite to repeat as state champions.
But Melcher said that "wearing that target on our back" doesn't bother the Hornets — and that the success of last time doesn't have anyone overconfident, either.
"Our guys stay grounded," she said. "They know what they need to do and they do it. I don't think the pressure or the glory of 2006 has gone to anyone's head."
Saline will nonetheless have any number of reasons for confidence, starting with Paterini and Gieseker, both two-time state meet veterans and perhaps the best 1-2 punch available to any team in Michigan.
"I don't think there's a harder worker in the state than Matt Paterini," Melcher said, "and I'm not sure anyone has as much raw talent as Phil Gieseker."
But Saline should be much more than just a two-man team. Melcher said that senior Nick Campbell, the team's No. 5 golfer at the 2006 state meet, has been the "most improved" player in the program since the long offseason began.
"He plays golf. That's what he does," Melcher said of Campbell's work ethic. "He's very mechanically sound. I think we're going to see this season all the hard work he's put in."
The Hornets likely will begin the season with junior Nick Areddy, a frequent varsity contributor in 2006, and talented sophomore Peter Spittler rounding out the starting five.
Taking the final two spots on the varsity roster and fighting for a starting slot will be senior David Janego, another player with varsity experience, and junior Eric Brooks.
Exactly how close the Hornets are to their championship form is difficult to guess, Melcher said, with the prolonged winter having played havoc with the team's tryout and preparation schedule.
"We've played three nine-hole rounds and that's it," she said, and the Hornets had to travel to Kentucky for that. "Not being able to get out on the golf course really puts us in our bind, both in establishing our team and working on our game ... It has been frustrating."
In the end, with virtually every team in Michigan struggling with the same issues, the haphazard start to the season shouldn't derail the Hornets' title hopes. And Melcher said that while she won't deny the Hornets have their long-term sights set on a repeat, they're also smart enough to realize there are still plenty of steps that have to be taken along the way.
"We want to win our league, win a district title, win a regional title, and ultimately, yes, win states," she said. "But we've got a lot of goals. Our guys have made making All-State Academic (requiring at least a 3.5 team grade point average) a team goal, which I think is great. Records are made to be broken and we'd like to set new ones this year for both nine holes and 18.
"Yes, the conversation about states has come up. But our primary focus right now is on April 9 and on Chelsea."
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