At the beginning of the season, head golf coach Julian “Trip” Horton preached about the importance of maintaining a positive mindset, and the team’s improvement from last year suggests the message has influenced their play.
With Citrus posting marginally better scores than last season, the message seems to have registered, but Horton wants to see more out of the guys.
“We’d like to see out of them a little more fire, a little more hunger,” Horton said. “This is a very calm, quiet team. … I like when some good things happen and they come out of their shell a little bit. I think that’ll improve us.”
The Owls showed some of that fire in their most recent tournament, shooting a season-best 298 April 13 at Marshall Canyon Golf Course in La Verne.
Freshman Will Middleton led the way with a score of 72, good enough to tie for third individually. Middleton joined the team in the fall and has shown he can compete with multiple top-of-the-leaderboard finishes. He credited part of his success to playing freely, something he said comes from already knowing some of his teammates.
“It’s just a great group of guys. I’ve known some of them since high school, so it helps,” Middleton said. “It helps the mental game, which is a big part of golf.”
With more than half the roster returning from last season, players say the team is closer than ever, which has relayed to on-course success.
“Everyone’s more there for each other,” sophomore Javier Alvarado said. “Last year we had that, but I wouldn’t say it was as strong as it was this year. I feel like that’s where the improvement comes from, our camaraderie and everyone supporting each other.”
Compared to last season, the Owls have placed higher in seven out of nine tournaments they played a year ago and have not finished lower in any repeat events.
Sophomore Angel Caro said the biggest change is that the guys are allowing themselves to compete with more freedom.
“I think last year we were always in our heads,” Caro said. “After every shot, I would get a reaction. Now it’s be more free, accept your good and accept your bad shots.”
With the final regular-season conference match set for April 20 at College of the Canyons, the Owls will aim to make one last impression before heading into the Western State Conference Championships. The championships will take place on April 27 at Sundale Country Club in Bakersfield.
