East Kentwood Ace Finishes at 4th Final
October 20, 2015
By Dean Holzwarth
Special for Second Half
KENTWOOD – Mackenzie Keenoy walked off the golf course for the final time as a high school golfer when she competed as an individual at Saturday's MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final.
The East Kentwood senior standout didn’t play as well as she had envisioned. However, the 17-year-old had no regrets about her last tournament that was played amid less-than-ideal conditions at The Meadows at Grand Valley State University.
“The wind was crazy on the first day and it was cold, and it started snowing for most of the second day,” Keenoy said. “The wind never stopped blowing, and my ball never wanted to go on the greens. That’s how my career ended, but it’s OK. I didn’t do as well as I thought I was going to, but I’m pretty positive about it and now I’m ready for the next step.”
Keenoy struggled to a 91 in her opening round, but recovered to shoot a respectable final-round 83. Her 174 total wasn’t among the top 10, but it didn’t take away from the banner high school career she enjoyed during an incredible four-year run.
Keenoy became one of the catalysts in the resurrection of the East Kentwood program. She took part in four MHSAA Finals – three with her team.
The Falcons placed in the top 10 at the Finals three consecutive years, sparked by the talents of Keenoy and spring graduate Sarah White. As a junior last season, Keenoy carded a top-10 individual finish to help lead the team to the program’s first MHSAA Finals championship – a resounding 22-stroke victory that she will forever cherish.
“It was awesome,” Keenoy recalled. “We knew we had a good shot going in, and after the first day we didn’t even look at the scoreboard. We didn’t want to know. We went out the second day and just worked our hardest, and we knew after the front nine that we had it. It was super exciting, especially because all the seniors were graduating.”
The Falcons didn’t have a chance to defend their title this season. Keenoy was the lone senior after heavy graduation losses left the Falcons with an inexperienced and young squad.
Still, Keenoy shined as the team’s No. 1 golfer. She won six tournaments, including the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red midseason and postseason tournaments, and emerged as the top player in the Grand Rapids area.
Keenoy fired a 75 at her MHSAA Regional to qualify for the Final as an individual.
“I just wanted to do my best and be there for my team because they weren’t there,” Keenoy said. “It was different not having any of my teammates there and warming up by myself. I would’ve much rather been there with my team, but I was just happy to represent East Kentwood at the state finals this year.”
East Kentwood girls golf coach Alex Giarmo was proud of Keenoy’s ability to persevere at the Final after a rough first day.
“We’ve been through a lot together and it was cool to do it one more time with her,” Giarmo said. “We had a lot of fun, and she never got down. Crazy things can happen in golf, but there was never a time when I thought that this was going to blow up. She executed really well on Day 2, and could’ve shot really low if not for a couple bad bounces.”
Overall this fall, Keenoy owned a scoring average of 78.1 for 18 holes and 36 strokes for nine.
“I won every tournament I played except for Regionals and the Finals, so I met every single goal,” Keenoy said. “I went out there and played for my team every day and worked hard at practice. With our team being so young, I wanted to be a role model for them.”
Keenoy embraced her role as a mentor to her younger teammates. She preached to them about work ethic and what it would take to achieve their individual goals.
“I loved it,” she said. “They didn’t know what to expect, so I tried to help them as much as I could. I told them, ‘This is what you have to do, you have to work hard to get where you want to be.’ I showed them how hard I worked the past three years, and this is where it got me.
“They all want to be great players, and I’m excited to see what the future holds for them next year.”
Giarmo said Keenoy’s experience and tutelage were important contributors to the team’s growth.
“She was a big help, and when you have a senior leader that has been through that many battles, it really helps your team look more mature,” he said. “It was a tight-knit team, and she did a great job leading them through moments of uncertainty. She had a phenomenal year, and she really embraced that No. 1 role. It was nice to see her get wins, and she was very reliable. That’s what you want in your No. 1 golfer.”
Keenoy, whose best attribute is her putting, is taking her talents to college. She recently committed to the University of Findlay in Ohio.
Keenoy chose the Oilers, who competed in the Division II National Tournament in the spring, after also considering Wayne State and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville.
“I’m really happy that I made that decision, and I liked the atmosphere of the whole place,” said Keenoy, who’s already been accepted into the nursing program. “It’s very much like Grand Rapids, and it’s the kind of place that I was looking for to go. It was the perfect fit for me, and I’m really excited.”
With her high school career finished, Keenoy is eager to reach her potential in the upcoming years.
“I’m looking forward to the future,” she said. “I worked my butt off to get here and that hard work has paid off. I’m excited now to transition from being a Falcon to an Oiler.”
Dean Holzwarth covered primarily high school sports for the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years and more recently served as sports editor of the Ionia Sentinel and as a sports photojournalist for WZZM. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Mackenzie Keenoy putts during Saturday’s second round of the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final. (Middle) Keenoy, hoisting the trophy, poses with her teammates and coaches after last season’s championship win. (Below) Keenoy drives a shot at The Meadows at GVSU. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Jenison Will Smile: 'That's What Syd Would Want'
August 21, 2019
By Dean Holzwarth
Special for Second Half
JENISON – The Jenison girls golf team is playing with heavy hearts this season.
Teammates and coaches are mourning the loss of the Wildcats’ No. 1 player, Sydney Carfine, who would have been a senior this fall.
The 17-year-old Carfine was tragically killed on the night of June 14 in a two-car crash in Ottawa County.
“It was like disbelief, like this can’t be real,” Jenison girls golf coach Linda Reimink said. “I was up north, and I knew that I had to get home and get together with our team. It was very emotional and just devastating for everyone.”
Carfine’s death shook the Jenison community and took its toll on her teammates, who had to deal with the loss of their fun-loving, outgoing and talented teammate.
“It was definitely hard for all of us, and the day after we got together to see each other and talk about it,” senior Amanda Smaby said. “I think as a team we’ve come together more because of it because we all loved Syd, and it’s making our season more meaningful.
“We’re looking at it as inspiration instead of keeping us from having a great season because that’s what Syd would want. Just to enjoy golf because she made it fun and she loved golf.”
Carfine was expected to be a leader on this year’s squad, and was looking forward to her final year of high school.
“She sent a long text to the team at the end of the school year how this was going to be our year and how she wanted to do sweatshirts with last names, and we’re going to carry through on that,” Reimink said. “We also have smiley faces on our shirts in honor of Syd because that was her motto: ‘Just smile.’”
While Carfine’s unexpected death has been hard to comprehend, senior Sophie Hoekstra said she thinks of her often on the course.
“One way I cope with it is I just remember that she is watching over me,” she said. “When I make a bad putt, she’s up there laughing at me, and when I have a good shot I say in my head, ‘At least you were here to see it.’
“It’s not too different because I know that she’s still here, but at the same time it’s really different because we don’t get to see her smile or get our hugs anymore. She was always so positive and always made friends with everyone she was with.”
Carfine began playing golf at a young age. Her mother, Jennifer, golfed at Michigan State University, and her late grandfather, Mike Mieras, was a PGA Professional at Hidden Valley Golf Course.
Carfine was a dedicated student of the game and worked hard to improve in all aspects.
She made the varsity team as a freshman at Byron Center and helped the Bulldogs reach the Lower Peninsula Division 2 Final.
Carfine moved and transferred to Jenison, where she emerged as one of the top players on the team and in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Black the past two seasons.
Despite her prowess on the golf course, Reimink said Carfine kept her sport in perspective and was dedicated to success in the classroom as well.
“She was really competitive, and when she got on the golf course she was competing, but also giggling about boys or something going on in school,” Reimink said. “It wasn’t all business, and she was way more than a golfer. She really cared about how well she did in school. When she had a freak out moment, it wasn’t about golf – it was about school. She was really committed and worked hard on her studies. She was very creative with her writing and art.”
Reimink said the team is doing its best to cope, but Carfine’s absence at practices has been noticeable.
“I think all the girls internally have handled it differently, but Amanda and Sydney always had individual competitions and that competitive nature against someone on the team she is going to miss big time,” Reimink said. “I feel like in practices, (Sydney) was really focused on her game, and we’re going to miss that. She was such a competitor and had big hopes for a really good year.”
Smaby said Carfine brought out the best in her and her teammates.
“It’s definitely a different environment now without her because she always added so much and was the leader of our team,” she said. “She always gave us a passion to want to do better, and she would make practices fun.
“She was the one we could talk to about anything. She made jokes and made everything a little lighter mood. It’s sad to think about, but the impact she made on our team and our program was just incredible.”
After struggling through back issues as a sophomore, Carfine qualified as an individual for the Division 1 Final last season and had aspirations to play golf in college.
“Her junior year, that was her number one goal,” Reimink said. “To get back to state.”
Carfine was honored last week during play at the annual Jenison Invitational. It was renamed as the Sydney Carfine Memorial Tournament.
There will be a moment of silence for Carfine at the Wildcats’ home football game Sept. 6.
Dean Holzwarth covered primarily high school sports for the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years and more recently served as sports editor of the Ionia Sentinel and as a sports photojournalist for WZZM. Contact him at[email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Jenison’s Sydney Carfine would have been a senior this fall. (Middle) The Jenison girls golf team stands together last season, including Carfine, far left. (Photos courtesy of the Jenison girls golf program.)