CSB+SJU golf teams both finding success early in spring seasons

The CSB and SJU golf teams recently started their spring season.

The Bennies opened their season at the Gustavus Invitational Spring Invite last weekend and the Johnnies were in Illinois from April 4-5 for the Illinois Wesleyan Invitational.

Golf has a season both in the fall and the spring. The biggest difference is that the MIAC Championships are held in the fall, and the NCAA tournament is held in the spring.

CSB junior Jamie Bimberg was very happy with how the team started off their spring season.

The team placed second in their tournament, with junior Maggie Roth tied for sixth and junior Catherine Jance winning the tournament.

“The Gustavus D3 Classic at Emerald Greens is always a fun tournament to start with as we know the course pretty well,” Bimberg said.

For the spring, Bimberg said the team is hoping to have some personal bests and reach the top of the leaderboard as a team.

“The spring season is a great opportunity to polish up the parts of our game that we need to work on and compete against teams in the MIAC as well as other teams we don’t play against in the fall,” Bimberg said.

In addition to the great weather this spring, Bimberg is looking forward to spending time with her teammates, competing in tournaments and having fun the remainder of the season.

CSB head coach Daryl Schomer said the spring has been very productive thus far.

“We’ve been pretty lucky to have an early spring and have gotten outside for practices. We also took our annual spring trip to Arizona over spring break and had a good time down there. Additionally, our first competitive tournament this weekend went very well. We had the individual champion and finished second as a team,” Schomer said.

For the spring, the team is focusing on how each golfer can improve specific areas of their game for the fall.

“There’s been a lot of individual work on the mechanical aspects of the game. Since it is such an individual sport, everyone has things to work on, so collectively that’s our focus this spring,” Schomer said.

Schomer is looking forward to the two remaining competitions of the season to see how his team’s hard work pays off.

He’s excited for the challenge and to see the team get better since the MIAC is very competitive and has many good teams.

Additionally, Schomer really loves coaching this team.

“They are such a cohesive bunch and so fun to be around. I always look forward to practice because they have such a good time while trying to get better,” Schomer said.

Schomer also wanted to recognize Jance’s achievement from the weekend in winning her first individual title. She said it was such a huge milestone for her in her career, and it was amazing to finally see it happen.

SJU head coach Chris Howe is also pleased with how the Johnnies have started off their spring season. He said the team played great at the Illinois Wesleyan Invitational, capturing a third place finish out of 38 teams.

“We did everything we needed to do to position ourselves to make the national tournament. We competed well within our own team and beat some really good teams,” Howe said.

The Johnnies are looking to earn an “at-large bid” to the NCAA tournament in May.

The team’s focus this spring is on mental toughness.

“This is what separated us in Illinois. We didn’t let outside things bother us and stayed focused throughout the tournament,” Howe said.

Howe is most looking forward to the Gustavus Invitational this weekend, so the team can continue building on what they did in Illinois.

SJU senior Cole Proctor was also happy with the team’s play in Illinois.

“We played really well, and our main goal was to beat teams in our region to move up in our ranking. We took care of business and got third, which moved us up a few spots in the regional ranking. We set a goal, and we achieved it,” Proctor said.

When reflecting on what he’d miss most about this team, Proctor said it wasn’t really about golf.

“It’s about the connections I’ve made and the experiences I’ve had the past four years that I’m going to miss most. Going out to eat after matches, practicing, hanging out and playing golf with my buddies,” Proctor said.

SJU senior Andrew Boemer was pleased with the team’s performance in Illinois. Their third-place finish helped their chances of securing a bid to the NCAA tournament.

“We know that in itself isn’t going to be good enough for the bid, but if we maintain our form who knows what will happen,” Boemer said.

As a senior, Boemer said there have been many people he’s been fortunate enough to play with and be teammates with.

He is going to cherish these memories and friendships for the rest of his life.

The biggest lesson Boemer has learned during his four years at SJU is to not take yourself too seriously, especially in golf.

“It’s such a hard game that beats you up and tears you down. At the end of the day, it’s just a game that we’re lucky enough to play with our friends every day. Coming to terms with this philosophy makes the bad rounds a little easier to swallow,” Boemer said.