Golf season is officially underway at Baker as the men’s team has already competed in the Crestview Fall Invite in Wichita, Kan. They finished in ninth out of the 11 teams that attended the Invite.
Senior Cole Fischman and Sophomore Trey Sauder both placed 24 individually at the Invite. Fischman had this to say about the results and the expectations for the rest of the season.
“I feel like we struggled getting off the rust, It wasn’t the best but there’s good holes and bad holes. We will come back sharper for the next one,” Fischman said. “Realistically, just playing together and having fun [is the expectation]”.
Last year, the men’s golf team only finished outside the top nine once, finishing 10 out of 13 in the William Woods Spring Invite last March. This year, Head Coach Chris Gilbert explains that this year’s competition is a lot tougher than last year, and if they can make progress in the win/loss column, that’s a good sign. Underclassmen make up over 60% of the Men’s Golf roster this year, and Gilbert has high expectations for them heading into the season.
“I think [underclassmen] make us better immediately, but obviously it’s going to be a bit of a rollercoaster as they go through their learning curves,” Gilbert said. “I expect them to come in right away and help with the team progress and be leaders on and off the course.”
It takes great leaders to make up a roster, and the underclassmen feel like the two seniors Gabe McKeown and Cole Fischman have risen to that standard.
“[The upperclassmen] try and hang out with us a lot to try and get to know us, and when we are golfing they help us a lot,” Freshman Andrew Burdett said. “They try and be friendly and make sure we feel like we fit in and play better basically.”
Fischman also had high praise for the underclassmen stating that they are fitting in perfectly, and they have been getting right into the action.
Not only are there lots of new faces on the roster, but two very familiar faces on the coaching staff. Grant Pogue and Mia Tovkach, who graduated in 2023 took over the assistant coaching duties this year for the teams.
“It’s great working with a former grad, on both men and women’s teams. Grant had the lowest scoring average last year, and he has really enjoyed the changes when I came in and helped us last year accomplish the things that we did, so he is really invested,” Gilbert said. “He knows three-quarters of the players on both programs, and that makes it more personal for him. He’s really excited to try and help, and that we hopefully keep pushing things forward and keep improving”
The men’s golf team’s next match will be the Virginia McCoy Invite. The invite will be hosted at Park University located in Parkville, Mo. on Oct. 9 and 10.
