Marlins capture county golf title

Farmington Hills Mercy's varsity golf team was back in true tournament form Wednesday.

The Marlins were hitting the ball better than any other girls team in Oakland County, and they're the 2012 Division 1 champions because of it.

Mercy won its first county tournament since 2001, ending a decade of dominance by Rochester High School and Rochester Stoney Creek.

The Marlins shot a 326 team score at Pontiac Country Club and were just three strokes off their season best. They were 17 ahead of runner-up South Lyon and 18 in front of Birmingham Seaholm.

Mercy hadn't played a tournament in more than three weeks until going to Grosse Ile for an 18-hole event the previous Saturday.

?We didn't play real well, but it was a tough course and we hadn't played a tournament since Aug 23,? coach Vicky Kowalski. ?I told the girls, ?We're in this to get your feet wet and get you back to playing 18 holes.' We looked at it as a tuneup (for the county) and a springboard to get us back to where we were.

?Almost everybody saw their scores go up a little bit (when school started and teams took a hiatus from tournament play), so I'm really glad to see us get back to the way we were playing at the beginning of the year.?

Mercy's best score remains the 323 it shot on the second day of the Traverse City tournament, and it also posted a 326 to win the Farmington Invitational on Aug. 23.

Mercy senior Brenna Hammond was tied for second place (77) in the county meet with North Farmington-Harrison junior Sophie Kollin, and senior Gillian Hickey shared fourth place (80) with three Rochester girls.

Senior Sarah Montone was part of a four-way tie for eighth place (81) that included Seaholm sophomore Rachel Wilson and Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood junior Greer Clausen.

?I was so proud of our seniors today; we had such great leadership,? Kowalski said. ?That was Gillian's lowest score of her career. She's been working real hard to get down there.

?She was so mad because she really wanted that 79. That's where my seniors are right now; they think they should be breaking 80. Brenna was right on her game today. She only missed being the medalist by one stroke.?

That honor went to Milford junior Gabby Brackrog, who shot a 4-over-par 76.

Mercy had a balanced team effort with five girls under 90. Junior Jess Geer provided the fourth score (88), and the Marlins didn't count sophomore Erica Heath's 89. Kowalski added junior Katie Baird shot an 85 Monday in a tournament at Farmington Hills Golf Club.

?The other coaches wanted to know, ?How many kids do you have who can shoot under 90?'? she said. ??Well, about eight!' That's a nice little problem to have ? Which ones are you going to play?

?You have to have four scores to put up a solid team score, and we really got that today. We're always talking about team. If one person isn't having a good day, it's okay because her teammates will pick her up. I don't have to depend on the same four girls all the time.?

MERCY WINS DUAL: The Marlins braved a rainstorm and windy conditions Tuesday to defeat Pontiac Notre Dame Prep, 181-216, and remain undefeated in the Catholic League.

?The rapid drop in temperature had the players wearing layers of clothes for the first time this season,? coach Vicky Kowalski said, ?but all six Mercy golfers still scored lower than Notre Dame Prep's best score.?

Sarah Montone was the match medalist with a 42; Brenna Hammond shot 45, and Jess Geer, Erica Heath and Gillian Hickey all had 47.

Source: http://www.hometownlife.com/article/20120923/SPORTS06/209230493/1002/rss24

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