Exeter-Milligan's Golfer Macy Due Signs with Doane

Macy Due signed to golf at Doane surrounded by her parents Travis and Sherri Due.  Behind are Exeter-Milligan Golf Coach Matt Nicholas and Doane University Golf Coach Jeannine Foster.

Exeter-Milligan golfer Macy Due has chosen to chase the white ball at Doane University this fall.

Due, a four-year golfer at Exeter-Milligan, is excited to begin her college golfing career. “I chose Doane because they have a great academic and a great athletic program. I went and visited their campus and I knew that this was the school for me. There is a great atmosphere there. It is a smaller school, which I like. It is also close to home, family, and friends.”

According to her Exeter-Milligan coach, Matt Nicholas, Doane is lucky to get Due, “She is a great leader and representative of our school. I have received multiple positive comments from coaches, players, and administrators of other schools about how she handles herself on and off the course. Also, she never needed me to sugar coat anything. If I saw something in her swing or body language during a round or practice, she would want the truth so she could get better.”

Due is used to the challenge of multiple irons in the fire.  In addition to participating in golf and track, Due is the head cheerleader at Exeter-Milligan and drum majorette of the band.  She also is a member of FCCLA and the National Honor Society.

Nicholas feels that Due’s experiences at Exeter-Milligan have prepared her for this challenge, “Macy knows what it is like to be busy all the time. For a college athlete, free time is minimal. She will be well-prepared to handle the rigors of being a collegiate student-athlete.”

At Exeter-Milligan Due was a four time letter winner with 10 career medals.  According to Nicholas, “Macy became the first golfer since 2009 to break 100 when she shot 96 at Ravenna this fall.”

Due sits in the third spot in personal records at Exeter-Milligan and is the first golfer under Nicholas’ tutelage to become a collegiate golfer.

While at Doane, Due plans to pursue a degree in Elementary Education and possibly a minor in Special Education.

Golfing wasn’t on her radar before she started high school, “When I first started playing my freshman year, I had not picked up a club before that. After my freshman season, I did not want to play my sophomore year. I told myself I was gonna quit. But my coach pushed me to go out. I think if I didn’t get that extra push to go out my sophomore year, I would be a different person. Coach Nicholas taught me that the game of golf is a mental game. That you’re not playing against other people, you’re playing against yourself and that is your biggest competition. The game also taught me that you need to have patience and courtesy. I wanted to quit my freshman year because I wasn’t good. But as the years went on, I improved every meet and was setting personal records. I learned that good things come to those who wait and are patient.”

That attitude will serve Due well as she comes under the tutelage of Doane Coach Jeannine Foster who is excited to add Due to the Doane team, “I believe Macy will bring some great energy to our team and am looking forward to watching her transition to playing golf at the collegiate level.  Freshmen golfers have the same opportunities as our upperclassmen to find a spot on the team.”

The combination of college courses and playing college golf will definitely test Due, “I think my biggest challenge as I continue golfing at Doane is keeping up with schoolwork because the season is in the Fall and the Spring. There also some meets that are out of state. But I have talked to the people at Doane and they said that they are happy to help whenever I’m in need of help or catching up, which is another reason I chose Doane. They are very understanding towards their student athletes.”

Nicholas is confident in her success and the preparation she has received at Exeter-Milligan, “I think that we do a good job holding kids accountable in school and in sports. She has learned that school comes first, but athletics can be just as valuable to your personal development.”