By: Dianah Hidzir
It was another year of dominance for the women’s golf team, which carried over into the program’s rankings in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championships.
Shi Qing Ong was the team’s top player, being named MIAA Women’s Golfer of the Week four times in a row. In the NCAA Central Region Preview that was held at the Rivercut Golf Course in Springfield, Missouri, Ong led Missouri Western with a 154 and finished tied for eighth place.
That victory led the Griffons to climb up to the 63rd place out of 170 division two schools across the nation’s relative ranking. Ong, who is also an international student from Malaysia, says that her first two years playing with the Griffons has been her best debut in her golfing career yet.
“Since coming here, I’ve managed to play my best, and be recognized in all of the seasons that I joined representing the school,” Ong said. “I’ve played my personal best for the record, won two tournaments in a row and also tied in one tournament. I couldn’t be anymore happy than where I am now.”
Other players who contributed their skills to this past season’s triumph were freshman Chong Yong and Megan Fogelson, sophomore Jenna Kosmatka, junior Tiffanie Yabut and senior Madison Romjue.
The team’s head coach, Greg Dillon, is extremely proud with how well the students have done.
“They moved from being a team that nobody else expected them to be,” Dillon said. “Where now, the program has actually changed because of the girls; they have proved to be reckoned with. We’ve achieved to close that gap between other schools, that are extremely good teams, and us.”
The Griffons’ top showing came at the UNK Invite at Awarii Dunes, as they posted a team total of 610 during the two-day tournament. The scores that the players have brought home made them finish as runner-ups. Chong Yong finished in fourth place with a 5-over-par 149, her best finish as a Griffon; Tiffanie Yabut scored a 157 as she tied for 24th; Jenna Kosmatka carded a 162; and Madison Romjue knocked in a 164. One of the team’s strengths that coach Dillon proudly acknowledges is the players’ exhilaration to keep on going.
“As they learn how to compete, they learn how to win,” Dillon said. “Especially when an individual scores high for the team, everybody else just realizes that winning breeds winning. It’s a cumulative effort that brings from the previous seasons to the next.”
Freshman Chong Yong, who had only played in four tournaments so far, believes that her progress as a student athlete has boosted her spirits to win as much medals that she can possibly put her hands on.
“Even though I’m still very new here, I could totally feel myself getting better and better each time I play,” Yong said. “The help and support from my coach and other teammates is the greatest; they keep me going to play my best without having the slightest thoughts to slow down.”
Though, endless support is not the only factor that enhances the Griffons’ achievements. The golfing facilities that are available for Missouri Western’s players happen to be a quality that sets the team’s standards higher than any other institutions’ as well.
“We’ve got great indoor facilities at the St. Joseph Country Club, so our players are still able to train intensively during times of bad weather,” Dillon, said. “Not only that it helps the team members upsurge their skill levels, but this fact also contributes to strategies in recruiting new members as well.”
The women’s golf team has used this season to prove that it is a strong program, being able to represent Missouri Western in the eyes of the nation and also to set the tone for future seasons.
