The Plant City High girls golf team went undefeated in the 2016 regular season.
High school sports can be a grind, but it’s important for all athletes to have fun.
The Plant City High girls golf team took that to heart this season, staying loose under first-year head coach Mark Kummelman. It couldn’t have worked much better for the Lady Raiders. They wrapped up the regular season Wednesday, Oct. 5, by beating Lennard to complete an undefeated regular season.
“It’s been pretty great,” team captain Savannah Kummelman says. “We had a fun year this year. Every day, we came out here and practiced and did the best we could, so we can’t wait to see what … regionals holds for us.”
MAKING CHANGES
When longtime head coach Meg Jordan retired in the offseason, the school had to bring in coaches for both the girls and boys teams. Upon taking the job, one of the first things Mark Kummelman had in mind was to lighten the overall mood to help the girls become better at shaking off on-course mistakes.
Of course, the team couldn’t afford to get too loose: under Jordan’s leadership, it achieved great success and, since Savannah Kummelman and fellow senior Emily Walker have been around, never missed out on an FHSAA regionals berth. Given the team’s recent track record, staying the course was important.
Even with some unfamiliarity — Brianna Badgett and Emma Miller are freshmen, and Taylor Dedmen is a transfer student — the team found its niche and thrived.
“We just get along really well,” Savannah Kummelman says.
It helps when the roster is made of fun-lovers and jokesters. The girls became fast friends and spend as much time together as they can. They like to kid around at practice — when there’s time — and have learned to make the most of any situation.
“During Hurricane Hermine, we had a nice little get-together, team bonding,” Savannah Kummelman says. “Everybody came to my house, and we baked, and we had a water balloon fight the next day.”
The only time the girls actively try to stress each other out is during a van ride, when sleeping golfers or coaches might be woken up by loud music, singing or brake checks.
FITTING IN
Badgett and Miller were relatively new to golf but fit in quickly. Both girls have shot as low as a 58 this season, with Miller hitting the mark against Bloomingdale and Badgett doing it against Newsome. Scores like that, the girls say, were possible because they knew their new teammates had their backs.
“It’s been great,” Miller says. “These girls have really brought me in and, from day one, have been showing me support.”
Dedmen didn’t take long to adjust, either. Against Lennard, she broke a record many Lady Raiders before her have attempted to own for years: she shot a 33, the best nine-hole round in program history, breaking the record of 34 held by Jordan, Kelsey Jensen and Kendall Johnson.
The team won first place at the Tuesday, Oct. 11, district tournament at Summerfield Crossing Golf Club with a score of 386. In the girls’ minds, nothing could have stopped this squad from getting a chance to play in regionals at Capri Isles Golf Club Monday, Oct. 17.
“Hopefully, we can make it to states,” Walker said.
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.
