Sports
Andover Golfers End Milestone Season at State Finals
After flying under the radar all season, Dave Barrett's Barons made a memorable run that fell short Saturday in Big Rapids.
The boy's Varsity Golf Team didn't grab the state title after two days of tough competition over the weekend at Ferris State University.
But that they were there at all capped a great season that Coach Dave Barrett called among the most memorable and rewarding in his 11 years leading the Barons on the links.
The Andover team advanced to the state finals for the first time since 2005, and did it by winning the Division 2 regional golf tournament on June 8 for the first time in at least a decade. The Barons finished third in their league and were fourth in every tournament this season, Barrett said.
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"I can't describe what it's like," he said prior to the weekend competition. "Our guys underperformed all year and were unable to just put it all together at the same time, until the last two weeks."
"No one expected us to do anything, and now they're at the pinnacle of any high school athlete's life, at the state finals, and it feels great," he explained. "There's no other team I'd like to take to the finals."
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Led by junior Brandon Steingold's 160 combined score, the Barons battled but finished toward the back the 15-team field each day.
The team shaved 16 strokes off the total between Friday's and Saturday's rounds but couldn't gain much ground on the competition. Especially the for the tournament.
The Barons finished 12th, shooting an overall 656, according to the MHSAA website.
Though he was especially proud of how seniors Darren Weiss and Adam Zureick performed at end of the season, Barrett said he expects the team's young core of Steingold, Sophomore Alex Zack and freshman Kyle Petrovich to only gain from this year's success and propel the Barons next season.
MHSAA Finals June 15-16
Andover - 336 - 320 - 656
- Brandon Steingold: 84 - 76 - 160
- Darren Weiss: 81 - 84 - 165
- Kyle Petrovich: 87 - 80 - 167
- Alex Zack: 84 - 83 - 167
- Adam Zureick / Dan Welsh: 90 - 81 - 171
MHSAA Regionals June 7-9
Andover - 317
- Kyle Petrovich: 78
- Darren Weiss: 78
- Adam Zureick: 80
- Brandon Steingold: 81
- Alex Zack: 93
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