There was a silver lining at the men's and women's Ontario Collegiate Athletic Association (OCAA) Golf Championship in Pickering, Ont. last week for the Saints Golf team.
While Humber College's squad of golfers won both categories, the St. Clair Saints had some strong individual performances that helped the men's and women's teams capture second overall and a pair of team silver medals.
St. Clair's Men's team was led by a standout fifth place finish by Nathan White, who shot seven-over par during three rounds of play at the challenging Watson's Glen Golf Club. White, a freshman at St. Clair, went into the final round with the lead, before sliding a few places on the final day.
"Nobody had the greatest round in the last round, but he hung on to a top five finish," said Saints Golf head coach Kevin Corriveau. "He's qualified for the Ontario amateur and that's remarkable performance by a freshman."
The Riverside student-athlete still finished high enough to be named to the OCAA All-Ontario team.
His teammates Spencer Higginbottom, Steven Hill, Cale Marontate and Simon Moir helped the Saints secure the second-place finish, beating out Fanshawe College by nearly 30 strokes over the tournament.
On the women's side, the Saints team also captured a silver medal by a large margin, led by a strong performance by Justine Gorham, who carded a 77, 82 and 85 over the three-day tournament. Gorham, who hails from Amherstburg, placed third in the competition, and was also named to the OCAA All-Ontario team.
"I am incredibly proud of Justine for what she was able to do to pull off a bronze medal on her own, really playing well down the last several holes of the golf tournament," Coach Corriveau said. "She's been progressing ever since she's been with us, and at the OCAA's, that was just phenomenal playing."
Teammate Alyssa Cowling also put in good effort, carding an 85, 80 and 87 to secure the team silver.
St. Clair Saints Golf head coach Kevin Corriveau was once again named the OCAA Coach of the Year, his third consecutive honour.
"I've got great assistant coaches," said Corriveau, who said all the credit goes to the athletes swinging the clubs. "I'm honored and incredibly grateful. There's a lot of great coaches in this in this league, and they're all deserving."
And the work isn't done yet for the Saints for the season. The Saints will join other top collegiate golfers from across the nation at the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association PING Golf National Championships. The event takes place at Desert Blume Golf Club in Alberta from Oct. 14-17, 2025.
The Saints women's team is ranked fifth going into the national championship, while the men's team is ranked fourth in Canada.
