Gunni golfers find strength in potential

Unusual preseason ahead as Dos Rios defrosts

Alex

McCrindle Times Sports Intern

High school athletics is defined by the cycle of a student athlete — from potential and growth to leadership and ultimately graduation. In the case of the GHS girls golf team, the squad appears to be in the midst of a rebound after losing a vital leader in captain and two-time state qualifier Riley Murphy.

Despite Murphy’s departure, the Cowboys welcomed eight freshmen to the team this spring alongside two returning sophomores — making it safe to say the Gunnison golfers show strong potential.

This season, junior Allie Schwartz and senior Blue Noble will step into leadership positions, Head Coach Kevin Mickelson said. Both golfers have experience battling against the region's toughest opponents, and are positioned to guide an inexperienced roster towards the state competition. Last spring, Schwartz qualified for state as a sophomore, while Noble narrowly missed out on state qualification in a sudden-death regional playoff round.

Mickelson said the team hopes to fill the shoes of previous players and grow the program following the influx of younger golfers.

“Blue and Allie will lead the way this year,” Mickelson said. “Then we have an entire range of underclassmen that look to fi ll those top-fi ve spots by the end of the year.”

The GHS golfers are scheduled to begin practice on March 21, however, there is a large hurdle awaiting the team in the next few weeks: the remnants of an especially snowy winter in Gunnison.

The Dos Rios golf course is still in the process of defrost- ing as the season slowly turns. The girls will practice putting on carpet, hitting wiffle balls in the high school gymnasium and praying the groundhog was wrong this year until the course opens.

“We are at the mercy of Mother Nature,” Mickelson said.

“After spring break we’ll begin winter drills, but we are really excited to start hitting balls.”

The Cowboys will begin competitive play in a shotgun-style tournament in Eagle on March 28 before heading to Montrose for a two-day tournament on April 4 and 5 at the Black Canyon and Cobble Creek golf courses. Although this spring presents a less-than-ideal preseason, the GHS golfers have set high goals for their overall performance this spring.

“We just want to be playing our best at the end of May,” Mickelson said. “We want

Seniors

Blue Noble

Sam Brown

Elaina Dillard

Juniors

Allie Schwartz

Ryann Nordberg

Dakota Shagun

Josephine Wishard

Cristina Ivars

Sophomores

Amara Lock

Maddie Vollendorf

Freshman

Kamryn Noble

Janey Mugglestone

Aiden Tomlin

Elizabeth Klingsmith

Anastasia Harvey

London Shafter

Zoey Wilkinson

Kaylee Vincent everyone to get better. But when it comes to competition, we like to stick our noses right in it and compete.”

(Alex McCrindle can be contacted at 970.641.1414.)