WORTHINGTON — One year removed from when the Worthington High School golf team was young and uncertain, a more experienced squad enters 2022 eager and encouraged.
All of coach Brooke Hermsen’s girls players return. The boys team of coach Paul Barduson had just five varsity performers in 2021, but there are eight now, including three capable of shooting under-40 rounds.
Two Trojans — senior Kendall Nixon and junior Tyler Jaycox — earned All-Big South Conference honors a year ago.
Here’s the lay of the course:
GIRLS
There are 21 girls out for golf, including 17 at the high school level. Hermsen believes the team is ready to hit the ground running.
“We started off a little slower than expected (last spring). We just grew as the time went on. They all improved. It wasn’t just one, and that gave us success both as individuals and as a team,” she explained. “We definitely have some expectations, and we definitely think we can grow from last year.”
Tim Middagh / The Globe
Nixon brings leadership and a consistent, steady game. She’s not a long-ball hitter, but she stays in the fairway.
Sophomore Madison Beckmann returns after being under quarantine for part of 2021, which meant that she didn’t qualify for enough meets to become eligible for all-conference honors. But she still managed to become a state qualifier. A long hitter with good approach shots, she has started on the varsity team since the seventh grade.
Lilly Mahlberg is a hard-working junior who has performed well on the school team since her freshman year. Juniors Tarren Spartz and Ellie Weg both improved noticeably last season and are strong natural athletes. Senior Abby Bristow and junior Mia Nixon, who performed at the far end of the varsity spectrum in 2021, finished strong.
Hermsen said her linksters began to believe in themselves through the course of 2021. All of them “get off the tee well,” she said, and if they’re consistent they could accomplish the team goal of placing in the top half of the Big South and making a mark in the section.
BOYS
Progress is what Barduson wants, and progress is what he’s already seen.
“We’ve always been able to drop their averages (year to year). This year I think the guys have really bought into what I’m trying to do,” said the coach.
Tim Middagh / The Globe
What the Trojan boys are learning this spring is to develop their strategies on the course, to maintain a consistently positive attitude, and to manage their own expectations.
Three proven golfers lead the way.
Jaycox averaged a 42 per nine holes as a sophomore and brings leadership qualities to the 2022 squad. He’s an accurate hitter and a good putter, and Barduson says he improved noticeably throughout last season.
Andrew Mulder, a long and lean sophomore, comes off a year where he averaged 45 strokes. Barduson likes his “true golf build” which affords him outstanding potential for distance with the arc he provides on his swing. He’s also a good chipper.
Another sophomore, Logan Powers, comes in with a 42 average from last year. He’s a power player who also has nice touch around the greens.
Because the 2021 boys team often went into meets with only five varsity hitters (only four scores count in meet scoring), there was little room for error. This year’s improved depth should help.
“Last year we were middle to bottom of the pack, but this year our goal is to finish in the top half of the pack,” Barduson said.