This past Wednesday, our men’s basketball team travelled to Columbus, Ohio to play the Ohio State Buckeyes. Walsh had a bus that was transporting interested students to the game, but I travelled down to the game with Coach and Courtney. We were meeting a possible golf recruit who lived in the area.

The game was pretty neat. Coach got us good tickets and we could easily see the action. The arena was cool too. It was much bigger than Walsh’s arena, but yet OSU has a lot more students. There were screens playing ads as well as the game all over the place. It reminded me of an arena I’d go to see a professional team play at or that I’d go see a concert at.

We lost the game, which didn’t really surprise me, but it was still fun to watch. There was some good times during the game where we played extremely well. It just wasn’t enough to keep up to Ohio State.

We got back to Walsh kind of late, but it was worth it in my mind. We had grabbed dinner before the game at Applebees and then had a good time at the game. It was nice to take a break from schoolwork.

Here are some pictures from the game. Enjoy!

Last week, a Rwandan genocide survivor visited Walsh’s campus. Her name was Immaculee Iligabiza. I had volunteered to help seat people, so got to stay and hear her amazing story.

Immaculee survived with around 7 other women in a small bathroom (3 ft X 4 ft) for 91 days. This fact alone astounded me. The man who was keeping them safe fed them scraps from his table. By keeping these women in his home, he was putting his family and himself in grave danger. If the soldiers found the women, there is no doubt that he, his family, and the women would be killed. The kindness he had to put himself in this danger, and the courage Immaculee and the other women had to be quiet and cramped for that period of time just to survive is truly inspirational.

She said that the greatest power she had to keep her alive in the bathroom was prayer. She had her conflicts with God, but came to realize he was on her side and would help her get through the genocide. Immaculee lost her entire family in the genocide, and has continued on with life. The most amazing thing is that she has forgiven those who were killing in the genocide. She holds no grudges against them, and has even told the man who killed her entire family that he is forgiven.

This power to forgive such an unforgivable act is stunning. I do not know that I would have the courage or will in my heart to forgive such an act. Hearing Immaculee’s story really made me think about people and the power of prayer, as well as the goodness in people’s hearts to forgive. I wish I could have the strength to do what she did.

I think her speech to the Walsh community really impacted many people’s lives. I think it made everyone think about what she went through and the things we hold against people in our own lives. I think that Immaculee’s story is something I will remember for a long time. It was an experience I am glad I got to take advantage of.

For more on Immaculee’s story, you can buy her book Left to Tell, or visit http://www.immaculee.com/

Fall break means many things to different people. The one main thing it means is the semester is halfway over. It means its time for midterms in some classes, midterm grades come out and you are either happy with them or realize you may need to step up your studying. For some, it means time to go home and see your family and spend time with friends you haven’t seen. However, for me, it means the last golf tournament of the season and a long weekend I get to spend with my family.

This year, fall break also meant time for a new routine. On top of fall break being our last golf tournament, it also means my roommate/best friend/teammate, Nikki, is leaving for Rome soon. Another group of students is leaving for the Rome Experience Study Abroad program this Saturday. I am so happy for her to be going on such a wonderful opportunity, but for me it means time to get settled down into staying on top of my schoolwork, working out, seeing other friends, and such. It’ll be strange at first having her leaving and having no golf practice, but I am sure I will be able to fill my time.

As for an update now on how the golf season ended….. We came in 2nd at Allegheny, last Thursday, and 2nd at Wittenberg, which was this last weekend. We have improved so much since last year that it is truly remarkable. Many of us dropped our averages by at least 5 strokes, and the team dropped its average by at least 20 if not more. Our spring season should definitely hold some more great golf and surprises!

Well, thats it for now. Keep warm!!!

This coming week is most definitely going to be a testing one.  The golf team is playing 5 of the next 7 days. We have three tournaments coming up to end our season. It has gone so quickly and I cannot believe we are almost finished. We won this past weekend’s Ohio Dominican University Auld Crafters Kisor Classic! So we are going into the coming week with high spirits and a good game…. Wish us luck!

First place at ODU Classic

The one thing I am really looking forward to in the coming couple weeks is a visit from my parents. They are coming out for fall break and our last tournament, like they did last year. I am very excited to see them! Being from so far away, you learn to appreciate the times you get to spend with your family since you see them so little.

Besides golf, not too much has been going on. I have had several tests which I have done well on. Its a task to keep up with schoolwork. Unfortunately, college life provides many distractions, so it can be difficult to get everything done. But, it is possible with proper time management. One of my beliefs about college is that while it is important to do well in school, it is also important to make time for things you really enjoy doing and to have some fun!

Well, it is time to get some work done for classes before this crazy week begins. Take care!

Fall officially began several days ago, and I thought I would take some time to fill you in on what I expect this season to bring…

As I’m sure you already know, golf will take up a majority of my time. We have five remaining tournaments. After struggling some this past weekend at Princeton, the team has set their minds to put it behind them and play as we know we are able to play. I am expecting for us to finish the season with a bang and win a few more tournaments. We are already shooting better than last year, and continually improving. Fingers crossed!

Classes should also start to pick up. Exams and quizzes will be popping up more often, starting next monday (when I have my first test). The coursework will get more intense and time management will need to enforce priorities for me.

This semester I am also trying to get involved in more activities on campus. Next week, a group of us from the team are participating in the Brother Charlie Bowl-a-thon. I am not very good at bowling, but I am looking forward to it all the same. I also plan on attending most of the “praise and worship” gatherings there are. I really enjoy going to them and being around my friends who share the faith that I have. I am also a part of the Pre-PT club. Last year I did not fully take advantage of being part of this club, but I hope to engage in more of the club activities and speakers it holds.

As far as what else the semester has in store for me, I do not know. I am looking forward to any opportunities that come my way. For now though, I am fully enjoying what I am involved in and being at Walsh with my “Walsh family.” This year is already proving to be better than last year, which I wasn’t so sure would be possible.

Golf Team Update: This weekend, the golf team is traveling to Clayton, Indiana for Depauw University’s Small College Tournament. Keep a look out for how we did

See ya!

Monday and Tuesday, Walsh Women’s Golf Team hosted their home tournament, the Walsh Classic. We were stoked to play on our home course and show yet again what we are made of. The team put in another solid performance and won by 35 strokes against Trevecca Nazarene University, who travelled all the way from Nashville, TN. Nikki Kulasa, a sophomore on the team, took medalist for the tournament, shooting an 83-76. Abbey Kimar, another sophomore, took 2nd shooting 83-79. I took 5th, shooting an 85-79. We were all so proud of each other at the end. If we keep this going, we are going places!!

This coming weekend we travel to my home state to play in Princeton University’s Invitational. I’ll let you know how we do.

Classes and golf are starting to create a hectic schedule. But I’ve learned last year, that if you love what you’re doing, that you can handle whatever you want. Speaking of it though, I have some homework to catch up on from missing class the past few days. I’ll write soon!!!

Kim

August 18th came quicker than I ever imagined it was going to. My summer was filled with so much. I golfed in several tournaments and worked at a local golf course. The main event of my summer was visiting Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for a week with my entire family. We went to celebrate my grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary. It was the first time in 6 years that my entire dad’s side of the family has been together. We went horseback riding, zip-lining, jet skiing, swimming in the Pacific Ocean, and even got massages at the house (we had rented a villa for the family instead of staying at a resort).

After my trip to Mexico, the rest of the summer flew and soon I was packing up my car and driving back here to Ohio.

Golf camp started the 19th and we’ve been going strong ever since. This year we have everyone returned as well as 4 new freshman. As soon as camp started, it was looking like it was going to be another good year for us. Our first tournament was in Lima, OH for UNOH’s invitational. What started out as an interesting journey ended in a big success. Let me explain… 

The morning of the tournament we were supposed to meet Coach outside the dorms at 5:45am, so fellow teammate and roommate Nikki Kulasa and I set our alarm for 5:30am. Well apparently 5:30 came and went and we were woken up to the sound of Abbey pounding on our door at 5:41am. After a sprint to get ready and outside, we were on our way. Everything was going smoothly until we all woke up to Coach pulling over to the side of the road. We had a flat tire. So, 2 hours later, we were finally back on the highway trying to make it to the course on time. We made it with some time to spare, so had a short warm up and began playing. With the morning we had had, who would have thought that the day would start going well? We broke the school record for a team score by shooting a 317 (which also happens to be 20 strokes lower than our best score last year). I also broke the individual score record by shooting an even par 72! I was backed up by Nikki, who shot an 80, Katie Ko (one of our freshman) who shot an 81, Abbey who shot 84 and Kelsey (another freshman) who shot 85.

The second day went just as well for us but we had 3 girls in the 70s. I shot a 79, Nikki 78, Katie 77, Abbey 83 and Kelsey 87. So we shot another 317; nothing like consistency We won the tournament by 20 strokes, beating St. Francis, UNOH, Madonna, Defiance, and Indiana Tech. I took first, Nikki 2nd and Katie 3rd. It was a very successful weekend.

After the excitement from the tournament, we came back to a Walsh campus filled with the incoming freshman. We joined in on the festivities of the evening (a giant slip n’ slide, ice cream, and music). The following day, everyone else moved back in. It was really great to see everyone again. I’ve missed them all while I was in Jersey. 

Monday brought on the first day of classes, and everything was back to how it had been last year. My classes do not seem very bad at the moment, but I’m sure they will all get a bit more intense. To name some of my classes, I have Physiological Psych, Social Research Methods, Physics, and Honors World Lit. I can’t tell which class will be my favorite yet, but I’ll let you know how they all go as time progresses. 

As for now, I’ve already got some reading I need to do, and then its up early for a team workout session. Fun fun! 

I hope you all had a wonderful summer! And I can’t wait to see what unfolds this semester!

Kim

PS!! We have a home tournament at Sanctuary Golf Course in North Canton September 14th and 15th. Come out and support Walsh’s women’s Golf Team! Questions, please feel free to contact me.

Its weird to think that my freshman year ended over a month ago, though it is nice to not have to worry about any papers, or exams, or class. Of course I was at Walsh for a good 2 or 3 weeks after exams because of golf team.

We left on May 9th for Rapid City, South Dakota. The next week was spent mainly golfing, but we also got to go see Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse. It was a good week. The course we played was nice. If you played it right, you were easily able to shoot low. As a team we were happy to play and get a Nationals experience. We are also looking forward to hopefully making it back there again and getting another shot to do better.

Golf Team at Mt. Rushmore

We didn’t make the cut after Thursday, so on Friday a few of us went to see the Badlands. On the way, we stopped at this little town called Wall that looks like it came out of one of those old western cowboy movies. It was interesting to shop around and see the bunch of things they had. The Badlands were amazing. They were so beautiful and interesting to see. At one spot there was a man made trail that we travelled down into. It was a tiny trail and scary to walk down and then back up, but we shot a few pictures and it was worth it.

Girls in the Badlands

We left South Dakota May 16th and headed back to North Canton. The rest of the team checked out and headed home that evening, but I didn’t leave for Jersey until the next day. I got to spend some of the night hanging with friends I wouldn’t see for the rest of the summer. It was a nice way to end my freshman year at Walsh.

Well, I hope everyone’s summer is going great!!! Mine is. I’ve been relaxing, golfing and working. Tough life When I have more to tell you, I will write again. Until then, keeping hoping nice weather will come and stay for the rest of the summer.

WE DID IT!!!! Walsh’s Women’s Golf Team won the AMC Championship that took place last Monday and Tuesday. It was an exciting time for all and proved that we have worked hard.

The weather both days was not ideal. Actually, it was quite the opposite. On Monday, we battled the rain, wind, cold, and really wet ground. On Tuesday we battled the same, with the addition of hail, sleet, and really REALLY wet ground. Our entire season has not been too great regarding weather, so it may have actually been to our advantage, but still, they were some hard days to play on.

After Monday, Walsh was behind Malone by 5 strokes, and only ahead of ODU by 6 strokes. Katy Collins and I were tied for the lead individually with Malone’s #1 girl. We knew what we had to do the next day, and prepared ourselves mentally to be able to do it… Oh and we dried all our gear out too.

On Tuesday, everyone knew we had to beat our Malone girls and not lose to our ODU girls. No one really knew how each other was doing, which made it even more tense. I was the last one to finish playing and was happy to be done. I had beaten both my girls, but still didn’t know how the others did. After handing scorecards in, we tried as a team to figure out if we had won or not. We thought we had, but weren’t completely sure. You could tell everyone was on edge with the fidgeting and silenced that filled the clubhouse.

Finally, the results were announced. AMC Champ is WALSH UNIVERSITY!!! We were sooo excited! I won medalist individually being the only one to break 90 in the tournament. It was such a good feeling!

The team has been calling everything a celebration. We now have to stay on campus, with no one here, until May 9th, when we leave for Rapid City, South Dakota for Nationals. CONGRATS to us! Can’t wait!

This week has been quite a hectic one, full of tests, papers, and late nights. I am glad to say its Friday and I am halfway done with all the work I have to do by the end of next week! YAY!

Last week, the golf team played in the ONU Polar Bear Classic. It was another successful outing. We took 3rd as a team and I took 2nd individually shooting an 84. We played at Colonial Hills Golf Course. It is the same course we will be playing Monday and Tuesday for our conference championship. Speaking of which, we cannot wait to play. We have been working our butts off and now want to play our best. Wish us luck!

This past weekend I was able to go home for Easter break. I really enjoyed being home. I had some studying to do, which surprise surprise I got some done! I also spent some time with my good friends and with my family. Easter sunday was spent in Wayne with my mom’s side of the family. We went out for a late lunch and then went back to my Aunt Nancy’s house to celebrate a few birthdays, past and future.

My break concluded with me helping out at my high school’s girls golf invitational, the Red Devil Invitational. It was awesome to see the girls I played with throughout high school, and to see my golf coach. The team performed well, and took 2nd. Kara, captain of the team this year, took 1st. I enjoyed see my sister Jen hit a few shots too, especially her awesome approach into the 17th green when she put it 5 feet from the hole!!!

Well, tomorrow morning I have to take my chemistry final, so I better get back to studying some of that. Can’t wait to inform you all on how we do at the AMC Conference Championship!!! SEE YA!