ROCHELLE — The Rochelle Hub varsity golf team welcomes back each of its top three players from the 2023 season, when the purple and white finished with a 2-10 overall record and an 0-5 mark in the Interstate 8 Conference. With a young core and a blend of other new and returning players, head coach Glen Mehrings said a winning record is among the team’s goals for 2024.

Rochelle will open the 2024 campaign with a road meet against Dixon and Freeport at Park Hills Golf Course on Tuesday, Aug. 20. The Hubs will tee off the Interstate 8 Conference schedule with a head-to-head home match against LaSalle-Peru at Fairways Golf Course on Thursday, Aug. 22. Junior Ian Metzger, a two-time IHSA sectional qualifier and the defending Interstate 8 tournament champion, highlights the returning players back in action for the Hubs this season.

“Coach [Dave] Cartwright and I were talking Monday and we’re excited to have great leadership back with Ian who’s a returning conference champion,” Mehrings said. “We have great maturity and leadership with our seniors and we have kids coming back who played a lot this summer. We’re also excited about some of the new kids we have coming out from other sports.”

Rochelle also welcomes back sophomores Alex Dyer and Owen Carmichael, who finished as the team’s No. 2 and No. 3 players during the 2023 season. Dyer, who advanced to his first sectional tournament and was an Interstate 8 Honorable Mention as a freshman, has been keeping pace with Metzger, who will command Rochelle’s No. 1 varsity slot once again. 

“We have a Batman and Robin thing going with Ian and Alex,” Mehrings said. “Alex is right there with Ian in terms of their playing ability and their friendship. Ian made great strides from his freshman year to his sophomore year and I know Alex will do the same… The most important thing about the top 8-to-10 players on our team all love golf and they all want to practice and get better. They all have athletic abilities and they’re competitive. They’re not afraid to work at it.”

The Hubs are seeking to replace three starters from last season including Owen Messer, Obie Nava and Chandler Cunningham. Candidates to step up and earn varsity roles are returning seniors Jacob Ost, a fourth-year player, and Chris Hickey, a second-year player. Rochelle will play in six tournaments including the Rocket Invitational at Deer Valley, the LaSalle-Peru Invitational at Senica’s Oak RIdge, the Brad Fowler Invitational at Aldeen, the ACC Charger Invitational at Phillips Park, the Sterling Invitational at Emerald Hill and the Interstate 8 meet.

“We’d like to be in the top half of the conference,” Mehrings said. “I know we can be above .500 with Ian and Alex as our No. 1 and No. 2 players. We’ll need to iron out our No. 3 through No. 5 players, but I know we’ll be able to get some consistent scores from those positions.”