By MARTY JAMES martyjames.sports@gmail.com
There's a two-word saying that coach Bob Freschi and players on the Napa Valley College men's golf team have been using during the Storm's spring season.
It could pop up at any time, and as Freschi put it, "It's kind of a running thing."
He added: "It was pretty comical the way we used it."
The saying for the Storm is, "That's unbelievable."
The saying applied when the Storm's Markus Nanpei won the individual title at the California Community College Athletic Association Northern California Regional Championships at Castle Oaks Golf Club in Ione (Amador County).
"Somebody would say, 'Oh my goodness, that's unbelievable,' " said Freschi.
The saying also applied when the Storm's Jack Mitchell knocked a 3-wood from 260 yards up to the green.
"They would say, 'That's unbelievable,' " Freschi added.
The saying continued during the Big 8 Conference season, with the Storm playing in 12 tournaments, as well as in some dual matches.
"It may be just, 'Hey, we're driving another four hours.' 'Oh my, that's just unbelievable,' " Freschi said.
Napa Valley's season extended past Big 8 Conference tournaments.
Napa Valley took third place at the NorCal Regional. The Storm shot rounds of 359 and 384 to finish with a team-score of 743. The top-4 team finish qualified the Storm for state.
On Monday, May 15, the Storm concluded one of the greatest seasons in NVC history, finishing in fourth place at the 2023 California Community College Athletic Association State Championships at Dragonfly Golf Club, in Madera. The Storm played some of its best golf at the season-ending tournament, shooting a 1-over-par 366 team-score in Sunday's first round and then bettering that with an even-par 365 in the final round.
Leading the Storm was A.J. Tomasini, who tied for third place individually and was named All-State after posting rounds of 67 and 73 for a 6-under-par 140 total.
"We said coming in fourth place – just unbelievable," said Freschi.
Indeed, it was a special season for the Storm, which shot 1-over-par 731 for the two-day, 36-hole state event.
"It was a pleasure to watch. So fired up for these young men at Napa Valley," said Freschi. "To be fourth in the state is quite an achievement and accomplishment. Just awesome to see what our program has done the last few years. I'm very proud of it. Proud to be the leader of this pack."
In addition to Tomasini, also placing for NVC:
* Markus Nanpei, tied for 11th place, 71-72 – 143.
* Anthony Zahradka, tied for 28th place, 74-74 – 148.
* Max Taylor, tied for 49th place, 77-76 – 153.
* Jack Mitchell, tied for 54th place, 86-70 – 156.
* Matthew Commander, 60th place, 77-86 – 163.
"We always say pars are awesome. We were 1-over par as a team, which was incredible when you think about it," said Freschi. "Just a testament to their grind and their commitment to our program and commitment to one another and to get it done when it matters the most, at the state championship. They pulled it off."
Reedley College won the state title, shooting 355-356 – 711.
In second place was Saddleback College-Mission Viejo, which shot 356-361 – 717.
Taking third place was Sierra College-Rocklin, which shot 361-363 – 724.
After Napa Valley, it was Fresno City College, 364-368 – 732; Cuyamaca College-El Cajon, 363-370 – 733; Riverside City College, 371-363 – 734; and College of the Desert-Palm Desert, 371-365 – 736.
"We were in it to win it, and so we gave it our best effort," said Freschi. "They were fired up as the scores were coming in. We hung in there to shoot even-par Day 2. It's pretty incredible.
"The teams ahead of us were deep and they were on fire. But we were hoping to come in that top-third. We were really close. I'm so proud of these men. They made a lifetime memory that they'll take with them. Their experiences were so awesome to be around and observe them doing what they do the best."
Tomasini played stellar golf at the state tournament. Dragonfly was set up as a par-73, 6,795-yard layout.
Tomasini was the co-leader after the first round, when he had seven birdies on his card. As one of the top six finishers, he earned All-State honors.
"Day 1 was just amazing. Just perfect shots. He was driving the ball really well. And on his approach shots, he was going a little bit past the pin and having the spin back. He was able to put some spin on it and it was impressive," said Freschi. "For him to go beyond the pin and spin it back, it was fun to watch. The first day he had his putter rolling and he was on fire.
"And then to back it up with even-par on Day 2, things didn't go as easy as Day 1. But he grinded it out to go even-par and he had a great birdie on (No.) 18. So, that was awesome to see."
The Storm moved up two spots in the team scoring after being in sixth place during the first round.
There were eight teams in the field – four from Northern California, four from Southern California.
Carson Adams of Saddleback was the individual champion. Adams shot 68-68 – 136.
Tying for second place was Elias Pettersson of Reedley, 72-67 – 139, and Aidan Valdez of Saddleback, 71-68 – 139.
Tomasini tied for third place with five other players.
NVC finished in fourth place in the Big 8 Conference.
Napa Valley was making its first state tournament appearance since 2003, the year the Storm won the CCCAA state title, at Kings River Golf & Country Club in Kingsburg.
"If you had told me back in January, top-4 in the state, I think I would have said I'm not too sure. But they progressed and developed. Very proud of our golf program," said Freschi.
* Marty James is a freelance writer who makes his home in Napa. He retired on June 4, 2019 after spending 40 years as a sports writer, sports editor and executive sports editor for the Napa Valley Register, a daily newspaper in Napa County. He is a 1979 graduate of Sacramento State and a member of the California Golf Writers & Broadcasters Association. He was inducted into the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Hall of Fame in 2016, the Vintage High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019, and the Napa High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2022.