by Eva Dean Folkert

A young Hope College men's golf team finally got its first opportunity to compete since 2019, and its finish is a sign of both talent and potential.

The Flying Dutchmen, who last played on October 5, 2019 and have had 522 days off, shot a team total of 313 on Saturday at the MIAA's first jamboree at the difficult Medalist Golf Club in Marshall, Michigan.

Trine University carded the lowest stroke total with 303 while Calvin University finished with 309.

"I really wasn't too sure what to expect today," said head coach Scott Lokers. "Without outside competition last fall, it was a little difficult to know exactly where we were, and I didn't know where the other teams were (competitively) either.

"Plus, we are really young. In the starting five today, we had two sophomores and three freshmen so I wasn't sure what to expect. But we had two good rounds today and everyone stayed focused and gave really good effort. This is a performance that we can build on." 

Hope was led by sophomore Jack Crawford (Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS), pictured left, and freshman Will Robson (Grand Rapids, Mich./East Grand Rapids HS), pictured right, who each fired rounds of 75.

They were followed by freshman Logan DeWitt (Zeeland, Mich./Holland Christian HS) who carded an 81; freshman Brian Marx (Bloomfield Hills, Mich./Pontiac Notre Dame Prep) with an 82; and sophomore Tim Wageman (Chesterfield, Mich./Saline HS) who shot an 83. 

Sophomore Seth Almquist (Minneapolis, Minn./Wayzata HS) played as an individual and finished with a round of 77.

Hope travels to Adrian on Saturday, April 3 for the next jamboree at Lenawee Country Club. Tee time is 1 p.m.