Caitlin Dorsch, Copy Desk Chief~
On Monday, September 10, the Lynchburg Men’s Golf team finished seventh overall as a team in the Greene Turtle Invitational at the Shenandoah Valley Golf Club hosted by Shenandoah University.
Senior Branson Terrell, who finished fifth at an even par of 70, also had the first top-five finish of his career.
For their next invitational rounds, the team headed to the Lakeview Golf Club in Harrisonburg, VA, for the Tom Kinder Invitational on Monday, September 24, and Tuesday, September 25. There, Terrell finished tied third overall and Junior Carter Old finished tied eighth.
This year, the team is looking to prove many of their critics wrong. The team believes that they will be super competitive in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference this year as a result of newfound focus on team culture according to Old, who finished in the top twenty individually at the Greene Turtle Invitational. He went even further to state, “We have a good team dynamic, and we are all really good friends. We showed up this season with a good mindset, and we are very focused on improving the program.”
To add to Old’s statement about this team’s focus to constantly improve and remain a strong, connected group of friends, Junior, Russell “Rusty” Markley insists, “We’ve got a strong team this year. Everybody is very talented, so practices are always competitive, and it is helping everybody to improve.” Furthermore, Old’s remarked that the team is concentrated on performing their best as a team. Their sole focus is creating a good environment that each player thrives in.
Even though the game of golf is pretty individual-focused, the Men’s Golf team at the University of Lynchburg is focused on team connection and competitiveness during practices in order to prepare for the tough challenges they face in tournament matches throughout the year. To expand upon this focus, Markley mentions, “We have a good team chemistry because every [player] on the team is pretty good friends with [one another], and I feel that we will have a good year.”
The team continues their quest to compete for a team ODAC title in the VSGA Intercollegiate Tournament at Sleepy Hole Golf Club in Suffolk, VA, on Monday, September 15, and Tuesday, September 16.