Salem's girls golf program revived under Nimmerguth's leadership

BY ED WRIGHT
Aug. 26, 2010, 11:15 a.m.

  The term "scratch" in golf often describes a player who shoots par or better.

  As far as the Salem girls golf program is concerned, scratch is what they are starting from this season following two years when there weren't enough players to field a competitive team.

  Under the direction of first-year coach Ryan Nimmerguth, the Rocks are experiencing a rebirth as 11 players fill out a roster that has been pretty empty since 2007.

  "They had a couple of girls who started to play last year, then they decided not to because there just wasn't enough interest," said Nimmerguth, who doubles as the Salem boys coach in the spring. "We have a couple seniors who haven't played since their freshman year, a couple of freshmen and we have probably five girls who had never touched a club before. It should be a fun season."

  Despite the inexperience, Nimmerguth has liked what he's seen from the team during early-season workouts.

  "It's a good group of girls; we have a lot of hard workers," said Nimmerguth. "They want to get better. Golf can be a very discouraging game, especially when you're just beginning, but they're doing well.

  "I've told them that they may not get a lot better this year, but if they keep working hard, the improvement will come."

  Considering the circumstances, Nimmerguth's goals are understandably modest.

  "Most importantly, we want to be able to field a team the entire season," he said. "We want to get the girls experience and offer them a fun time so that they enjoy the game and want to return in the coming years to help build the program."

  Four Rocks have emerged as leaders in the past two weeks: freshman Christine Li; sophomore Gabrielle LeBlanc; and seniors Lizzie Mazorowicz and Ewa Zajac.

  "Lizzie and Ewa played as freshmen and decided to come back, which I am very happy about," said Nimmerguth. "They're both solid players. Christine decided to give up swimming for golf and Gabrielle, who was the only Salem player to play in the league meet last year, is a very solid player with good fundamentals."

  The third senior on the squad is Kristin Schultz. Mackenzie Brown is the lone junior while Katie Vena and KaLaya Thomas join LeBlanc to give the Rocks a solid nucleus of sophomores.

  The freshmen contingent consists of Li, Amanda Bennett, Lindsay Brown and Kaylin Janiczek.

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