News
Briefly
Calendar of Events
Commentary
Opinions
Sports
Diversions
World News
Login
Letter Submission
Search
Archive
Publishing Policy
Classifieds
Mail Subscriptions
St. Cloud State University
College Publisher
Home
>
Sports
Osheim, Little lead SCSU golfers
By Derek Sullivan
Published:
Monday, October 13, 2003
Media Credit: Ryan Henry
Senior Kristen Osheim, a Brandon Valley S.D. native, was a first team All-NCC pick after an impressive season at SCSU.
Media Credit: Matthew Kaster
SCSU second-year golfer and All-NCC pick Chris Little tees off at the SCSU Invite tournament last month.
The SCSU Golf program had a tremendous fall season that concludes with four golfers earning all-conference honors.
Men's golfer Chris Little and women's golfer Kristen Osheim were named First Team All-Conference by the North Central Conference.
First-year men's golfer Josh Hagstrom and senior women's golfer Sarah LeClair were named to the second team.
All-Conference is determined by how well a golfer performs at the conference tournament held at Westwood Ho Country Club in Sioux Falls, S.D. The top five finishers in the tournament are considered first team all-conference. Golfers who finish between 6th place and 10th place are considered 2nd team all-conference.
Little led throughout day one and day two of the three-day tourney. Robb Bierbaum, of the University of South Dakota, would eventually catch Little on the final day. Bierbaum shot a 203, chipped in on three greens to take home the title. Little finished with a second place 205.
Little, will have two more chances to win the conference title.
"I'm sure Chris understands what he has accomplished," said Head Golf Coach Judi Larkin. "I know he really felt like the tourney was his to win."
Kristen Osheim, senior from Brandon Valley S.D., also went into the final day with a chance at a first place medal. Osheim has had an inconsistent senior year, and was hoping that playing on a familiar course would lead to a career-best showing.
"I played the course a lot in high school." Osheim said. "The weather was perfect and my family was there."
Osheim struggled on day one, but shot a career-best 65 on day two. On the final day, she played with three-time all conference and 2003 conference champion Tanis Hastmann.
Osheim got off to a solid start and was even par through the front nine. Unfortunately, a triple bogey derailed her title run and left her two shots behind University of Nebraska-Omaha's Hastmann.
Coach Larkin said both Little and Osheim lead by example, however, Osheim has the advantage of having fellow seniors Sarah LeClair and Angela Kippley on her team. On a veteran squad, Osheim, a co-captain with LeClair, makes sure everyone gets along.
"Everybody gets along with Kristen and everybody likes Kristen," Larkin said. "Leadership is making sure everyone is comfortable."
Little, while only a sophomore, is one of the veterans on a men's team that will commonly place two to three first-year players in the starting line-up. Due to the fact that he is also one of the elite golfers in the North Central Conference, he must take a leadership role.
While Little is not a rah-rah guy, he does lead by example and the first-year players have noticed.
"He has shown them the dedication and practice ethic," Larkin said. "He shows great demeanor on the course. He's very controlled and never loses his anger. He is very calm, cool and collected."
For not being recruited out of Elk River High School, Little has shown great improvement since he came to SCSU two years ago.
With Little and four first-year talents, SCSU could be a pre-season conference favorite in 2004.
Osheim will finish her career after the spring season but hopes playing or teaching golf is in her future.
"I have been playing golf as long as I can remember," Osheim said. "I hope to move south (after graduation) and teach golf at a resort. I would love to teach."
Before Osheim and the other five seniors in the golf program leave, some work still needs to be done. The conference tournament is simply one step on the way to nationals.
Golf is a split-season sport and SCSU just completed the first half of the season. In the spring season, the goal is to advance to the NCAA Championships May 11-16, 2004, in Orlando, Fla.
"We as a team are sitting very strong, as long as we don't fall back in the spring," Larkin said. "Chris is sitting very well as an individual."
The men's team got a pleasant surprise from Hagstrom, who only qualified for the starting five the day before the tournament, and finished ninth overall.
Osheim's road to nationals is a lot harder. Only two teams out the Midwest region and two at-large golfers earn a trip but the women's team knows they have what it takes to qualify.
Osheim, LeClair, and Angela Kippley are three veterans who all had success throughout the year. If they all play up to their potential on the same weekend, the team could earn a trip to Florida.
"That was our goal all fall," Osheim said. "We hope to get all three hitting on all cylinders one weekend. We have a great chance as team. We all need to play well the same day and we would be awesome."
Forum:
No comments have been posted for this story.
Post a comment
Privacy Policy
Network Advertising
Article Syndication
