Seniors pose with coach Bryant Mages. From left: Jack Nelson, Logan Netzke, Mages, Toby Weiss and AJ Arneson.
The Sleepy Eye golf team placed third at the State Golf Meet. From left: Coach Bryant Mages, Jacob Schultz, Carson Erickson, Jack Nelson, AJ Arneson, Toby Weiss, Logan Netzke and Coach George Schwint.
The State Golfers enjoyed the traditional Fire Truck ride through town Monday night (6/21)
by Bryant Mages, Sleepy Eye United Coach
Liz Schwint (individually) and the Sleepy Eye United boys (team) competed in the State Class A Golf Tournament this past week (June 15-16) at Pebble Creek Golf Club in Becker, MN.
Schwint:
It was Liz Schwint’s first appearance at the annual “best of the bests” tournament, and she looked to enjoy the experience while having the goal of shooting two good rounds of golf. On day one of the tournament, Liz shot a score of 112 on her way to familiarizing herself with the ins and outs of the golf course at Pebble Creek. On Wednesday, Liz rounded out her first state tournament appearance in style, as she tied her season low 18-hole total of 104 for a 62nd place finish in the state.
I was really proud of how Liz ended the state tournament this year by tying her low 18-hole score on the year. Toward the end of the year, Liz really proved that it didn’t really matter what golf course she was playing – she will bring a good mental game with her wherever she goes, and it definitely paid off for her down the stretch.
Boys:
The Sleepy Eye United boys’ golf team came into the 2021 State Class A Golf tournament optimistically, after shooting the 3rd lowest section tournament score (633) in the state – behind North Woods (625) and Fertile Beltrami (628).
Day 1 of the state tournament definitely did not start off on the right note for us. I watched as a number of the kids took some pretty big numbers on the opening couple of holes. However, that kind of made the first day more rewarding in the end. They ended up battling back to shoot a really solid team score of 321 and cut what was an early 10+ stroke deficit to a tie for first with Fertile Beltrami by the end of the day. Its just the type of thing I reiterated to the guys all year long – forget about the bad shots and bad holes and move onto the next. Seeing that level of perseverance they had on the first day is just what a coach loves to see.
Day 1 Scores included: (321 team score)
Carson Erickson – 74
Toby Weiss – 79
Logan Netzke – 82
Jack Nelson – 86
The guys struggled a bit on the second day of the state tournament. On the second day, the Sleepy Eye United boys got off to a more promising start, and actually gained a brief two stroke lead over Fertile Beltrami after just a few holes of play. However, in the end Fertile Beltrami’s consistency in their top four golfers was what led to the school’s first ever state championship. We definitely didn’t play as well as we could have on the second day of the state tournament, but I was really proud of how we battled. There aren’t many kids that can say that they contended for a state title, and from beginning to end, the class A title was basically a three-team race. Being one of the three teams in contention is something that this team can be really proud of.
Day 2 Scores: 335 team score
Logan Netzke – 80
Toby Weiss – 81
Carson Erickson – 85
Jacob Schultz – 89
Final Results
1st – Fertile Beltrami 629
2nd – Legacy Christian Academy 642
3rd – Sleepy Eye United 656
4th – North Woods 675
5th – West Central Area 691
6th – Benson 707
7th – Lanesboro 714
8th – Adrian 731
Comments About Season:
If there’s one overarching feeling I have about my first season as head coach for the golf team, its definitely that I’m just super proud of these kids. They worked hard, they improved, they got knocked down, they got back up again, and they came back stronger and lived up to their potential. Its honestly just really inspiring to me.
The state tournament was a really exhausting couple days for me, I’m not gonna lie. I wanted the kids to have the best experience they could have in the final days of the season, and it really got me thinking about why I started coaching in the first place. When I took the head coach position for the golf team, I wanted to be able to give these kids the same awesome experience I had when I was in golf in high school.
The primary reason for why I think I enjoyed golf so much in high school was because of my high school golf coach, Tom (‘Doc’) Larson. Its crazy to think about how one person can have such an impact in a person’s life, but Doc really influenced me in many ways – both on and off the golf course. He really took the time to get to know every one of his players individually, to celebrate their victories no matter the size, and to keep things positive when things didn’t go well. Overall, he was an incredibly invested and dedicated coach – much much more than any coach I ever had. He truly cared, and that’s why he has had the impact he has had on so many golfers over the years.
It never really hit me how much of an impact I might have been making on these kids this year until I saw the four seniors out on their last hole at the state tournament. The exchanges we had I will never forget, even long after I coach. It was really rewarding because I realized I had made an impact on these kids, and it also made me a bit emotional because I realized they impacted me as a coach and as a person as well.