At the start of the year, Tim Sample didn’t know quite what to expect in his first season as head coach for Meridian High School’s Varsity golf club. After a disappointing elimination in the Regional Championship in 2023, Sample was quoted saying that a return to that level would be the expectation, while a trip to States would be a “reasonable and achievable goal.”
Two months later, the Mustangs didn’t just make it to the big stage. They won the whole thing, taking home the VHSL Class 3 State Championship trophy for the first time in program history.
“We pulled everything together at the right time,” said Sample. His team was solid, but not spectacular throughout the regular season, usually beating most of its District opponents but playing second fiddle to Kettle Run. However, the Mustangs also consistently had various members out of the lineup, and it wasn’t until Regionals on October 7th that all six of their top contributors were able to play at the same time.
“We’ve had the ability to pick each other up,” Sample added. “When one player couldn’t play or didn’t have an especially good round, one of our other players would come through with one of their best.”
During that Regional Championship, the Mustangs up-ended Kettle Run, beating them by seven strokes as Henry Brown – who played with a broken toe – and Charles Griffith each led the way with individual scores of 76. Then, after advancing to the State Finals at Harrisonburg’s Heritage Oaks Golf Club, Sample’s message to his players was clear and simple.
“We were already champions,” the coach explained. “We’d already won the Region, and we were proud of that. But now that we were here, I knew that if each of these guys went out and played the game I know they can play, they could beat anyone else in the field.”
Playing with house money, Meridian did just that. It was cold and raining, but the Mustangs were undeterred, and led by seniors Noah Peng (70), Brown (74), and Alex Way (72), they posted a cumulative score of 297 to beat second-place Western Albemarle – the heavy favorite – by five strokes. Yet it was the freshman Griffith who secured the victory, completing what was a total team effort for Sample and his squad.
For the first-year head coach, his team’s victory goes beyond just the game. It’s a victory for the culture they have established together in a short amount of time, and perhaps most importantly of all, a victory for each of his players’ growth as individuals.
“Watching their pride in themselves, in their teammates, and in the hard work they put in this season was as fulfilling for me as lifting the trophy,” said Sample. He claims that the team’s experience can be summarized in a comment made by Brown following the State Championship celebration, who was quoted saying that “(Coach) believed in us before we believed in ourselves.”
“That’s my goal at the end of the day,” Sample explained. “I want to create an environment where each player can believe in themselves both on and off the course. One of the great things about golf is that it teaches us many life lessons, and one of the biggest is self-confidence.”
Of course, the ride doesn’t end here for the Mustangs. Sample intends to build Meridian’s program for years to come, and even beyond the team’s big victory on the course, he has already noticed significant growth. For starters, the female representation on the team, which is co-ed, grew from one to five girls this past season, with one of them, Era Inglis-Nela, making the cut to play in the VHSL Regional Zone qualifier as an individual. Additionally, with success comes brand recognition, and Sample noted that there is a certain excitement surrounding the team that he hopes to be able to sustain.
“The day after we won the State Championship, I was standing outside the school waiting to take our girls to a practice round,” he described. “And a middle school student approached me and said, ‘Hey, are you the Varsity coach for the High School?’ I said I was, and he said, ‘You just won the State Championship, when can I come and play for you?’”
All in all, it’s an exciting time for golf at Meridian High School. This season was an unexpected, but beautiful journey, and it may be only the beginning of something truly special.
