Both Stevenson University men’s and women’s golf teams are back on the green and motivated to reach their teams’ goals — to make the cut in the NCAA tournament and be one of the 20 teams remaining.
Head coach Chris Ramer said that the team is hungry and has matured from last season. There will be challenging tournaments and tests as the season progresses.
WOMEN’S GOLF
“Everyone has improved over the summer,” said sophomore Laura Rentz, who has shot under 90 in each event this year, leading the team to seventh place at the Schweizer Invitational. The goal for the team is to shoot under a 340, and they shot a 338.
“Shooting under our goal definitely helps the team gain confidence,” Rentz said.
Confidence will play a huge factor in the upcoming events. The women’s team added two freshmen who will be part of the team’s success, including Amanda Perez, who shot an 84 in the first round of the Schweizer Invitational Sept. 1-2. “The team had four freshman the previous year, and each golfer has upgraded their play,” said Ramer. The team is young, but the returnees have plenty of experience, which Ramer hopes will help them succeed.
The women traveled to Abbotstown, Pa., to play in the McDaniel Fall Invitational on Sept. 8, placing first, Rentz led the team with a score of 80, while Perez was two strokes off. The team will participate in the Millersville Invitational on Sept. 30 in Quarryville, Pa., at the Tanglewood Manor Golf Club.
Following that, the next event will be the Shenandoah Greene Turtle Invitational in Front Royal, Va., October 6-7, then the Mustangs will travel on October 9 to Mohnton, Pa., for the Alvernia Invitational.
The Stevenson Fall Invitational will take place on Oct. 11 at Piney Branch Golf Club in Hampstead, Md. The season comes to an end on Oct. 22 after the Eastern Invitational in Wayne, Pa.
MEN’S GOLF
The men’s team got their season under way on Sept. 10 at the Shenandoah Greene Turtle invitational in Winchester, Va. Freshman Shane Angle and junior Matthew Shur led the team, carding a score of 71.
“The men finished in fourth place with a total score of 289, but the goal for the team is to shoot under 300,” Shur said, adding that the team expects to win at least three more tournaments this season, since weekly competition is only making them better.
The team traveled to Carlisle, Pa., for the Dickinson Invitational where they came in sixth place with a total score of 307. Angle shot the lowest with a 74. The team played in the Elizabethtown Fall Invitational in Hershey, Pa., finishing in fifth place with a score of 307. Senior Wynn Geis led the Mustangs with a score of 75.
The Tom Kinder Memorial will take place on Sept. 24 and 25 in Harrisonburg, Va., and the first event in October will be the Gettysburg Invitational on Oct. 3 in Hanover, Pa.
The men will travel to Abbotstown, Pa., for the Mason-Dixon Collegiate Classic Oct. 6- 7, and the next event will be held on Oct. 15 for the F&M Fall Invitational in Lititz, Pa. The men will then come home for the Stevenson Fall Invitational on Oct. 20 at the Piney Branch Golf Club in Hampstead, Md. The team will finish their fall season at the Lebanon Valley College Dutchmen Invitational in Lebanon, Penn., on Oct. 22.