In the swing of things

Youthful Wildcats prove that talent
can overcome inexperience on links

  If you own a copy of the pre-2009 Plymouth High School girls golf record book, feel free to shred it.

  After the way this year's team played, the old book is outdated from the table of contents to the index page.

  Led by freshman state-qualifier Kelsey Murphy, a core of young future stars, and the leadership of its two senior captains, LeAnn O'Shaunessy and Liz Cizek, the Wildcats rewrote every individual and team record that had been established in the seven-year history of the school.

  Murphy earned the distinction of becoming the first Wildcat to qualify for the Division 1 state meet when she won medalist honors at last week's Regional meet at Giant Oak Country Club.

  Her freshman teammate, Sarah Thompson, missed joining her this weekend at East Lansing's Forest Akers West Golf Course by just three shots.

  "Overall, it's been a great year," said Plymouth coach Chris Moore, who has overseen the team since its inception in 2002. "To finish 9-1 in dual meets and share the (KLAA South) division championship is a nice accomplishment.

  "We have a long way to go still. We're very young still obviously, with all the freshmen and sophomores on the team. The biggest thing about this team is that everybody improved from the beginning of the season, which is huge. That's what we were looking for."

  The Wildcats' chemistry is as impressive as the results on their scorecards. Despite a mix of talented freshmen and returning veterans, the team has avoided any hint of jealousy or young-vs.-old rivalries that haunt some squads.

  "Everybody gets along great on this team," said Thompson. "The girls that were on the team last year kind of took us freshmen under their wing. Everybody has fun, yet we all learned a lot, too."

  "Everybody cares about how the others are doing and we encourage each other to do the best we can," said freshman Mandy Kirsch.

  Murphy took the KLAA by storm this fall, taking medalist honors in all 10 dual meets and at the conference tournament last week at Pheasant Run.

  An All-State performance at this weekend's state meet wouldn't be a surprise considering the 76 she shot at last week's Regional event.

  "Kelsey works harder than anybody else, so everything she has accomplished is well-deserved," said Moore. "She puts in so many extra hours and has played a lot of competitive golf for being 14 years old. I kind of knew at the beginning of the season that she was good enough to qualify for the state meet. Unfortunately the team didn't join her like we had hoped, but they're close. We'll get there next year."

 

LeAnn O'Shaunessy and Liz Cizek

 

 



 

Ed Wright can be reached at info@plymouthcantonsports.com or (734) 453-1980.