SCH golf team captains Katie Shields (left) and Morgan Schneer at their home course at Sunnybrook Golf Club. Missing from the photo is the third senior tri-captain, Serena McNiff. (Photo by Tom Utescher)

by Tom Utescher

Starting in on the second round of Inter-Ac League golf matches, the girls of Springside Chestnut Hill Academy played their rematch against Episcopal Academy last Tuesday. On SCH’s home course at Sunnybrook Golf Club (par 36 for the front nine holes), the visiting EA Churchwomen received two rounds in the 40’s as they recorded their second victory over the Blue Devils this spring, 240-293.

Each team is allowed to have eight designated players participating in these head-to-head scholastic bouts, and the best five scores are figured into the team totals at the end. Episcopal, whose only loss thus far came against longtime league champion Academy of Notre Dame, improved to 4-1 last Tuesday, while SCH was still looking for its first victory, slipping to 0-5 on the season.

The Blue Devils only had seven girls available for duty in the Episcopal rematch, and their lone representative in the first group of golfers, senior tri-captain Serena McNiff, was feeling under the weather. She made it around the course, but did not have one of her better rounds, while out of the two Churchwomen playing with her, a score of 44 turned in by senior Victoria Johnson would be counted towards EA’s team score.

McNiff, who will attend the University of Pennsylvania, shares the captains’ duties with fellow seniors Morgan Schneer (UCLA) and Katie Shields (Susquehanna University).

The other two 12th graders were playing together in the same foursome last Tuesday, with Schneer scoring a 55 and Shields a 61. Once more, EA only counted one of the scores from its two players, but again it was a 44, this one from senior Ashley Mauch.

There were two SCH sophomores in the next foursome, and the Blue Devils received scores of 57 and 63 from Marlene Savage and Maia Brown, respectively. Here, Episcopal added a 50 by sophomore Bella Echevarria and a 52 by senior Alexandra Carolin to its match total.

Each team completed its team tally with one score from the last foursome to arrive at the clubhouse, the Blue Devils getting a 57 from freshman Ellie Murphy, while the Churchwomen figured in a 50 from junior Joesi Rider. Another member of this quartet was a Springside Chestnut Hill seventh grader who is already playing up on varsity, Allison Gerhard.