With each of their first tournaments cancelled due to Hurricane Katrina, the men’s and women’s golf squads will begin their fall seasons shortly.According to head golf coach James Schilling, the men’s squad will begin its season Monday at the Fred Marx Invitational in Monroe. The team’s first invitational was its own Gulf Coast Collegiate Classic, which was scheduled for Sept. 12 and 13. This invitational was cancelled and won’t be scheduled or relocated.
The women’s squad will begin its season on Oct. 10-11 at the Lady Indian Invitational in Jonesboro, Ark. The Lady Colonel Classic, which the squad hosts, was also cancelled because of Katrina and will not be rescheduled or relocated.
Although these two tournaments hosted by the golf squads were a source of revenue, Schilling said not having the tournament was more upsetting than losing money.
“It was our own tournament,” Schilling said. “Anytime you have a specific date for a game cancelled, naturally it’s disappointing for everyone involved.”
Although revenue will not be gained from these tournaments, Schilling said it will not hurt his teams’ funding.
“The Athletics Director Rob Bernardi and my Senior Women’s Administrator Louise Bonin, have assured me the hurricane and missing those two tournaments will not affect funding for the rest of the tournaments,” Schilling said. “There are a lot of things we can’t control, but they’re committing to help us compete.”
Additionally, Schilling said the squads raised about $21,000 at the Outback Golf Classic in August, which will aid in funding scholarships, along with providing funding to the athletic department.
Schilling said the squads held one practice before the hurricane struck the Gulf Coast region. He said they were out of practice for two weeks while the courses were closed. Trees were knocked down at the teams’ courses, and they were shut down while Nicholls was out of school. The courses opened a week after the hurricane when the squads resumed practice.
While Schilling had golfers returning home for the hurricane and international golfers enduring an unfamiliar experience, he also had to explain to the international parents what was happening.
“(I have to) accurately portray to the parents what is going on, (and) how housing of evacuees across the state has changed the student athletes’ studies or how they go about their businesses,” Schilling said.
Schilling said the players have not noticed the evacuees’ presence, because they have not disrupted how his students attend classes. He said the only thing the players have noticed is the different environment in which their classes are located.
Schilling will welcome back senior Steve Luminais, who gained an extra year of eligibility due to a recent NCAA rule change to this year’s men’s squad. Before the new rule change, players who were nonqualifiers their first year had to sit out that initial year and could play three years. If they completed their coursework in four years, they could gain an extra year of eligibility for the year they had to sit out.
With the rule change, players who were nonqualifiers out of high school now have to complete 80 percent of their coursework towards their degrees in order to gain the year they lost. Luminais has done this.
Schilling said this year’s men’s squad has a better overall roster. The squad is currently going through qualifying to see who will participate in the tournament in Monroe Monday.
“(It is) much more competitive,” Schilling said. “We’ve got qualifying on right now, and it’s pretty competitive. Competition is always good. Any time you have nine people going for five or six spots, it brings out the best in them.”
Besides Luminais, Schilling said all of the returnees will be in contention in terms of playing a significant role on this year’s squad. Schilling is also waiting to see how his freshmen do in a tournament because none of them have tournament experience yet.
Last year the men’s squad finished lower than the middle of the pack in seven of the nine invitationals they attended throughout the fall and spring seasons. Schilling’s goal for this year’s squad is to have better finishes in tournaments.
Schilling expects Luminais, his lone senior, to show leadership on this year’s squad.
“He’s got the most experience,” Schilling said. “Hopefully the entire team will do excellent, but he’s been here the longest. He’s older too. He’s 22 years old.”
Last year’s women’s squad finished the season in third place in the Southland Conference Women’s Golf Championships.
Besides the loss of seniors Shawna Fraser and Cathey Colwell, Schilling has to replace junior Jaimie Myck, who Schilling believes left on Sept. 2. He declined to comment on her departure.
“The abrupt departure of Jaimie put the team in a tough position, but we’re going to do what we can to try to overcome (it),” Schilling said. “Hopefullly the freshmen can step up and help. It’s going to be a huge challenge.”
Schilling’s goals for the women’s squad will not change much from the goals of last year’s squad. He said the team would put in hard work and ready themselves for tournament play.
