Eichhorn, Carney-Nadeau Repeat in D3
June 2, 2016
By Amanda Chaperon
Special for Second Half
GLADSTONE – On Wednesday, Carney-Nadeau’s Hunter Eichhorn took the afternoon off school to play a practice round at Irish Oaks in Gladstone, where the MHSAA Upper Peninsula Division 3 Finals would be played the next day.
Last year, when Eichhorn won medalist for the second year in a row, he shot a 68 at that same course.
And Wednesday was no different. His practice round yielded a 69, so it's safe to say he was feeling pretty good heading into Thursday's round.
Unfortunately, his putting was nowhere close to what he would have liked. But that didn't stop Eichhorn from taking medalist honors for the third year in a row with an 18-hole score of 75.
“He's a tremendous kid,” Wolves coach Jake Polfus said. “He has a tremendous work ethic. He puts all the time in to be this good. You don't see that in many kids in any sport around here. He deserves everything he gets. He had a rough day today, but for him that's not that bad. That's where he's grown the most, is how he manages his golf game.”
Throughout the course of the season, Eichhorn has competed against himself. At most events, he was far-and-away the best golfer on the links. On Thursday, however, he had some competition from Cedarville's Avery Freel, who fell to Eichhorn by just two strokes carding a 77.
“I felt good about Avery's game today,” Cedarville coach Rob Freel said. “And I know he had the potential to give Hunter a run for his money. After 15 holes, they were all square. I knew it was probably going to come right down to the wire. Avery kind of had a bad tee shot on 16 and he ended up with a double bogey there, so that was a momentum-stopper for him.
“They're competitive players, and they both came right down to the wire,” coach Freel added. “Avery just fell a little short.”
Avery Freel's overall strategy was a pretty good one considering he was neck-and-neck with the two-time champ with three holes to play.
“I was just trying to match him shot for shot pretty much,” Avery said. “Overall, I thought I played pretty good. I shot even on the front (nine) and then I was just trying to stay with him, and on 16 I had that double (bogey) and that's when it fell apart.”
Despite the fact Freel was going up against “the champ” and one of the best prep golfers in the entire U.P. in any division, he didn't feel he had to change his game.
“It's not hard,” Freel said with a laugh. “You just play your own game.”
Which is exactly what his opponent, Eichhorn, did to earn himself the honor of top player at the tournament, and also help his team to its second straight U.P. Finals title.
Well, that, and knock in a few crucial putts.
One of those big putts was to birdie No. 17, a par three. While Eichhorn’s putts down the stretch saved him, he wasn't impressed with his short game overall.
“My putting was brutal,” he said with a laugh. “I made the two biggest putts that I had to make, but other than that, I didn't make anything.
“I played a lot better last year,” he added. “And I played here a lot better yesterday (Wednesday). I was getting beat by Avery with I think four holes to go, but I made those big putts to secure the win and to help our team win.”
The Wolves totaled a 344, comprised of scores from Eichhorn, Mason Linder (87), Cameron Kuntze (89), and Kage Linder (93).
“I think the way they practice is a huge strength,” Polfus said. “You know, how much time they put into it. And our one through five. We used our fifth golfer's score today instead of our number four, so I just think that helps out a lot. I feel like we're deep, and just their work ethic is always a good thing.”
Avery Freel's score factored into his team's runner-up finish. The Trojans shot a combined 358, helped also by Mike Haske (93), Chase Fisher (94), and Trevor Kohlmann (94).
The top five individual scores were rounded out by Mitchell Borseth of Ontonagon in third with a score of 81, followed by Painesdale-Jeffers' Jacob Zerbst with an 82 and Lake Linden-Hubbell's Jason Sutherland with an 83.
The Wolves and Trojans were followed in the team standings by Chassell with a score of 361, Ontonagon with a 362 and Painesdale-Jeffers with a 374.
PHOTOS: (Top) Carney-Nadeau's Hunter Eichhorn watches his drive on hole No. 15 at Irish Oaks Golf Club in Gladstone during Thursday's Division 3 U.P. Final. Eichhorn was medalist with a 75. (Middle) Cedarville's Avery Freel putts on hole No. 17. Freel finished second overall with a 77. (Photos by Amanda Chaperon.)
Powered by Transplanted Heart, Pioneer's Williams Relishing Return to Golf Team
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
May 16, 2025
Brady Williams knew something was wrong.
The then-freshman at Ann Arbor Pioneer was in class when he texted his parents that something wasn’t right. His mom, Tiffany, rushed to the school, got Brady into the car and drove straight to the emergency room in Ann Arbor.
His father, Greg, arrived a few minutes later.
“He was in heart failure,” said one of the doctors who was caring for Brady, then 14.
When he went home from C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital nearly six weeks later, Brady was the proud owner of a new heart.
“It was really random,” Williams recalled. “One day I wasn’t feeling good at school, so I left and went to the doctors. They kept me for a couple of days and told me I needed to get a heart transplant.”
It’s been an incredible journey for the Pioneer sophomore, who returned to school last fall and is now on the Pioneers junior varsity golf team.
“I can do basically everything now,” he says. “I’m back up to normal for sure.”
Normal is something Williams had rarely known. Even as a young boy he would occasionally get tired from doing simple things. As the family learned to deal with it, they decided at one point to seek more medical advice. After genetic testing, at the age of 7 he was diagnosed with a rare neuromuscular disease, known as limb-girdle muscular dystrophy.
“It basically makes the muscles weak, especially your heart,” he said.
As he got older, he was would sometimes struggle with the effects.
“We carried an AED (automated external defibrillator) with us everywhere,” Tiffany Williams said.
He tried playing sports, including basketball, and golfed regularly. In the months leading up to the heart transplant, though, Brady had slowed down.
“I was playing basketball and golfing four times a week,” Brady said. “Slowly I stopped playing basketball and even golf because I was getting really tired.”
Under the care of Dr. Mark Russell, Dr. Aaron Stern – a professor of pediatric cardiology at University of Michigan – and Dr. Kurt Robert Schumacher, the medical director for the pediatric heart transplant program at C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, Brady at first had a temporary device installed in his heart, but it was quickly determined that a heart transplant was needed – and fast.
“They didn’t think it would be this bad, but it ended up hurting my heart so bad that I had to get a new one,” Williams said.
After the decision was made to move forward with the heart transplant, he waited only two days for the new heart.
“They put me at the top of the list, and they got it there quick, thankfully,” Williams said.
His passion for sports has always been a driving force. A football fanatic, he is a die-hard Cleveland Browns fan. His favorite quarterback, former Browns signal-caller Baker Mayfield, sent him a video message while he was recovering. Former Eastern Michigan University and current Las Vegas Raiders star Maxx Crosby also reached out to him.
In the hospital, Williams was glued to the television.
“Everyone took to Brady,” Tiffany Williams said. “He helped everyone with fantasy football teams while he was in the hospital, plus Michigan won the national championship. So that was a good year.”
His recovery included several months of physical therapy and doctor visits. At first, Brady had to attend school virtually, but returned to the halls of Pioneer in the fall.
“I feel like honestly better than I ever have,” Williams said. “This is a really good heart, a lot better than the one I was born with. This is like 100 percent. My old one, I never lived at like a 100-percent level. It was always low.
“I don’t even notice anything. It’s just normal all of the time.”
This spring he was cleared to golf after a physical. He is able to use a cart during his matches and tournaments, something he said helps him a lot.
“This is what I really wanted – just to join the team and get back to how I used to be – hanging out with friends and making new ones,” Brady said. “That’s the best part about being on a team.”
Being part of a team was at one point something Brady didn’t think he would get to experience. He knows how fortunate he is to have that opportunity again.
“I realize that everything can get taken away from you easily,” he said. “One second you can be at the highest point and the next you can be at the lowest. I’m definitely at the highest right now after making the golf team, being on it and having a lot of fun with it.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a news and sports reporter at the Adrian Daily Telegram and the Monroe News for 30 years, including 10 years as city editor in Monroe. He's written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. He is now publisher and editor of The Blissfield Advance, a weekly newspaper. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.