What will Fairfield’s Brayden Miller do for an encore?
The Falcons’ senior reached the mountain top for high school golf last year after winning the state title.
Fairfield coach John Kauffman sees a relaxed and still hungry Miller as he attempts to make another run at a state championship.
“I think for Brayden all the pressure is off after winning the state title,” Kauffman said. “That is such an incredible accomplishment. The last time an area golfer won a boys title was 1939.
“However, with that being said, he certainly has his eye on returning (to state) and giving it a run again. I would put his ball striking and mental part of the game against anyone else in the state.”
Miller is looking to qualify for the state finals for an amazing fourth year in a row. As a sophomore, he finished sixth and during his freshman year Miller tied for 12th.
There’s also plenty of talent surrounding Miller. Fairfield lost only one golfer from last year’s team which finished 21-2 overall and unbeaten in the Northeast Corner Conference.
Juniors Jake Elliott, Benjamin Kio and Jasper Carl gained valuable regional experience a year ago.
“I really like what I’m seeing from the team early,” Kauffman said. “Regional experience that Elliott, Kio and Carl got last year will help us this year. We also have more juniors and sophomores that worked extremely hard last summer. It’s going to be quite a battle on who fills those last couple of varsity spots.
“We’ve been undefeated in the conference for three straight years and we’ll be battling to keep that streak going. Westview has the Haarer brothers (Silas and Luke) playing again this year, so I’m sure they’ll be looking to challenge that streak.”
In the Northern Lakes Conference, Northridge is looking to contend again for a league title and capture their fifth straight sectional title. The Raiders finished 6-1 in the NLC in 2024 and second behind Warsaw.
“I look forward to a great season this year,” said Northridge coach Ken Brewster, whose team finished 17-4 overall in matches. “Even with the loss of six seniors, I still expect us to be very competitive in the NLC and in our sectional and regional.”
Returning letterwinners are senior Alex Thompson and juniors Kaden Miller and Brayden Hershberger.
Also fighting for varsity spots are senior Jason Wickey, juniors Brayden Hershberger and Josiah Schrock, along with freshmen Cooper Kropf and Brady Riegsecker.
“We bring back some varsity experience and will rely on some newcomers to help us this season,” Brewster said. “Competition for several spots on varsity will help make this team get better as the season goes forward.”
Goshen finished 3-4 in the NLC last year and 9-7 in dual/three-way matches.
The RedHawks will be led by senior Todd Kauffman, who was an All-NLC selection last season and a regional qualifier.
Other golfers that coach Chris Arnold expects to have good years and be leaders are seniors Kendall Scott, Josh Narayan and Kael Bestul.
“Kendall, Josh and Kael have all played in a number of varsity matches and tournaments, so their experience will be vital,” said Arnold.
NorthWood returns first team All-Northern Lakes Conference golfer Caleb Vincent, along with junior Colton Rouch and sophomore Micah Schwartz.
“With no seniors and not a lot of experience on the varsity level, we will be focusing a lot on the growth of the team this year,” said Panthers coach Phil Ummel.
“Fortunately, we have some talented players and a lot of hard workers. That is a recipe for much improvement throughout the season. If things break our way, we’ll have a chance to make some noise by the end of the season.”
Concord will be under the direction of first-year coach Aaron Goldstein. For two years, Goldstein was the boys and girls golf ...
