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Golf team captures ninth straight title, 10 of the last 11
MISAL champions times three
Friday, Oct. 30, 2009
 Click here to enlarge this photo Staff photos by MICHAEL REID
Calverton's Mike Hicks putts along the rain-soaked green on No. 9. The senior finished the round with a 44.
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Calverton (11-5) suffered a pair of four-stroke setbacks to Riverdale Baptist, but five Cougars placed in the top 12 to win its ninth straight championship and 10 of the last 11.
"It's very rewarding and it's something that should have been coming throughout the year," Calverton head coach Dan Coffin said. "But to see them come through yesterday was absolutely one of the most gratifying wins I've ever had."
"Oh, we're pumped," said Calverton senior Mike Hicks, who shot a 44. "[The losses to Riverdale Baptist] have been a major monkey on our back. We hadn't lost a league match in four years so it was a huge wake-up call that we were getting very lazy with our play. We're a high-caliber team; we shouldn't be shooting in the low 50s. After they beat us the second time, we knew they were for real and that we needed to beat them this time."
Calverton freshman Ty Herriott, who shot a tournament-best 39 and was named individual champion, added: "We're so happy. We didn't want to be the first class to lose the championship so we wanted revenge. And we wanted to win it for our seniors."
Despite less than idea temperatures – a light but steady rain fell throughout the match – Calverton shook the monkey off its back. But the simian that Herriott shook from his shoulders Tuesday was even bigger.
In last year's tournament, Herriott held a one-stroke lead going into the last hole but imploded and lost to Riverdale Baptist's Ryan Artis. And earlier this season, the Cougar held another lead but was saddled with a six on the last hole and again fell to Artis.
"The first year I was just nervous," he said, "and then during the regular season, I didn't focus on my bunker shot [on No. 9]."
But this time, there would be no faltering.
Herriott, who is a member at the prestigious club, said he wanted to play it safe on the rain-soaked course.
"I just wanted to hit control shots," he said. "I didn't want to really take full swings because I really didn't want to chunk the ball."
Herriott, who was paired up with Artis (40), never shot worse than bogey to finally wrap up the long-awaited win.
"He's very excited, especially after last year when he had it in the bag but let it slip," Coffin said. "And then to come back this year and pull it off, I would think it would be very gratifying for him."
The players insisted they wanted to play in the rain and Hicks gave his team a pep talk before the shotgun start.
"I sat the team down today and kind of gave them a win-one-for-the-Gipper speech, with me being the Gipper," he said. "I really didn't want to go out on the bottom; I wanted to finish strong my high school career."
And the speech must have worked as Calverton shot two birdies –– by Jordan Washington on No. 4 and Hicks on No. 8 –– and 16 pars. Herriott had five pars, while Hicks and Nick Mazza, who finished with a 47, each had three. The tide swung when Teddy Secor, the team's No. 6 golfer who was starting just his fourth match of the year, handed in a 42.
