Viking team bounces back
May 15, 2009
There’s nothing like a couple of quick and relatively easy wins to brighten a high school golf team’s spirits.
After losing to Sussex Central and Sussex Tech, the Cape Henlopen Vikings faced off against the Delmar High School on May 5 at Greenhill Golf Club, the Wildcats’ home course in Salisbury, Maryland. The Cape kids won fairly handily, 182-202, despite not using their senior captain, Tristan Karsnitz.
Matthew Kersey won medallist honors for the day with his 43, a nice improvement from some of his prior varsity matches. Nick Purnell and Shane Ghigliotty paired up with 46s to tie for second and third best among the Vikings, while Devin Medd finished the team scoring with his 47.
Purnell admitted to a bit of an advantage in playing Greenhill. “I’ve played it before. My grandmom is a member there. We played the front nine. It was raining a little bit at the beginning.”
Ghigliotty wasn’t nearly as sanguine about the playing conditions. “I thought the weather was terrible. My hands were really slippery on my grips.”
Medd was also unimpressed with the rainy weather. “It poured the first two holes. I was miserable. I got an umbrella from my dad after the rain stopped.”
Medd is still too young to know that the best way to prevent any rain from falling on a golf course is to carry an umbrella, and the best way to bring on a downpour is to not have an umbrella attached to the golf bag. He’ll learn.
Casey Anderson said his 48 against Delmar had a simple explanation. “I was still recovering from my vacation. I had two pars, and as for the rest, you can take your pick from bogeys, double bogeys, and triples.”
On May 6, the Vikings traveled north to Magnolia to play Polytech at their home course, Jonathon’s Landing. Once again the Cape team enjoyed another victory, 164-190.
Karsnitz and Ghigliotty shared co-medallist honors for that day with a pair of three-over 39s, one stroke better than Polytech’s Mason Mendoza, last year’s Henlopen Conference champion.
Karsnitz said, “I had six pars and three bogeys. I couldn’t make a whole lot of putts.”
Ghigliotty said he also had three bogeys and six pars, including a long sand save on the ninth hole. “I hit it out of the bunker, and the ball rolled until it went past the hole 30 feet, but I made the putt.”
For several of Ghigliotty’s better-scoring rounds, he’s been paired with Karsnitz, and Ghigliotty likes it that way. “When you play with someone who’s a little better than you, you try a little harder to play better.”
Head coach Claudio Smarrelli also noted, “I like to pair together the players who have the same swing rhythm. It seems to help both of them.”
Purnell’s 42 was third best for the Vikings against Polytech. “It was a par then bogey then par kind of day. I only had one double bogey.”
Medd scored a 44 to finish up the Viking side for the day. “I had a really bad slice with all my clubs, but I still played well. I think I had eight bogeys and a par. The problem was with my grip; it was too weak.
Anderson improved a little bit with a 45, thanks to a relatively strong finish for the day. “I started out triple, double [bogey], then bogey, bogey, birdie, then par, triple, par, par.”
Several team members were able to play in the May 11 Sussex Family YMCA tournament, at Rehoboth Beach Country Club. During the post-round dinner, Smarrelli said, “I’m happy with where they’ve been going this season, and I’m pleased with what they’ve accomplished.”
The Vikings have the Conference championship coming up, followed by the two-day state championship scheduled for the end of May at Wilmington Country Club’s South course. Smarrelli is confident that his team will continue its long string of qualifying for the states, as a representative of the Henlopen Conference.