Shreve earns MVP honors

Warder 2nd, Mallery 3rd
Spring League begins March 17 at 5 p.m.

* Video interview – YouTube
* Ryan’s Disc Golf Stop on Facebook
* Mile Lane Disc Golf on Facebook
* Previous coverage:
Feb. 27 . Feb. 20 … Feb. 13 … Feb. 6 … Jan. 30 … Jan. 23 … Jan.16 … Jan. 9 … Jan. 2 … Dec. 26
Dec. 19 .. Dec. 12 .. Dec. 5 .. Nov. 28 .. Nov. 27 .. Nov. 21 .. Nov. 14 .. Nov. 7 .. Oct. 31 … Oct. 24

Story and photos by AlleganyPlayground.com

CUMBERLAND — Turns out Bill Shreve didn’t need the incentive of a race for Most Valuable Player to weather the elements on the disc golf course.

All he needed was the score of his last round. That’s because the 45-year-old Cumberland man is intrinsically motivated, and therefore tends to focus on improving his own game and not how he fares in the standings each time out. That approach just so happened to propel Shreve to the inaugural MVP presented by AlleganyPlayground.com and Ryan’s Disc Golf Stop as the most successful, consistent player during the debut season of the Fall/Winter Doubles League.

Over the 18-week season from Oct. 24 through Feb. 27, Shreve competed 16 times and won at least a share of first place on eight occasions.

The MVP award is on a points-based system that rewards a high level of play and participation. Each week, players can earn five points for a win or shared win, four points for second place, three points for third place, two points for an ace and one point for completing a round. Play was completed on the course in Cumberland and at Mile Lane Disc Golf in Mount Savage.

Shreve finished the season with 65 points, followed by David Warder in second place with 53 points and Scott Mallery in third with 48 points. All three will be recognized on the first night of Spring League play on March 17 at Central Assembly of God in Cumberland.

Nicki Raynor, 45, of Vale Summit, was the top female competitor, finishing 14th among 23 players. Raynor earned eight points over two Sunday afternoons. Josiah Spradlin led the 18-and-under division with seven points earned over seven weeks of competition.

Bill Shreve

Shreve was one of three players in league play to throw an ace. He did so on Dec. 5 from the red No. 7 tee at Central. That day happened to end in a playoff with Warder, as both players had finished the round of 18 baskets with a score of 52.

Shreve’s consistency in play helped him contend for the MVP award even before its creation and initial standings were announced at the season’s midway point. After three weeks, Mallery stood atop the standings with 15 points and Shreve was second with 14 points. Warder made his first appearance in Fall/Winter Doubles League play in Week 3 on Nov. 7, and — with a share of the win and an ace — promptly cut Mallery’s lead nearly in half.

David Warder

Shreve took the lead in Week 5 on Nov. 28. While Mallery and Warder did not play that weekend, Shreve finished with the low score among the five players present to give him 20 MVP points. At that point, Mallery was in second place with 19 points, followed by Ethan Shreve (16), Colby Mallery (15), Kevin Spradlin (13), Warder (12) and Keith Raynor (10).

Things began heat up as the temperatures went down and the new year began. Warder three of the first five weeks, but played in five consecutive weeks from Dec. 5 through Jan. 2. After the first weekend of 2022, Shreve led with 36 points, followed by Warder (33), Scott Mallery (28), Raynor (25), Ethan Shreve (24) and Colby Mallery (23).

Scott Mallery

What stands out at that point, among other things, is that Ethan Von Hagel, 19, of Cumberland, had played only one week through Dec. 26. With a share of fourth place, he earned a single point — giving him a total of two points through Week 10.

Von Hagel, though, played every week of the second half of the season and vaulted up the standings. In the final nine weeks, Von Hagel won a share of first place three times (15 points) and second place five times (20) points to finish fifth overall.

Shreve, meanwhile, said he has been playing disc golf for four and one-half years. He and his family learned of the sport while on vacation in Virginia Beach, Va. Shreve said they went to a sporting goods store to buy a starter set to go play a round.

Bill Shreve accepts his plaque at basket No. 1 on the course at Central.

Since then, Shreve has taken advantage of work-related travel to play courses in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida, North Carolina and Texas. His favorite, though, is Ditto Farms in Hagerstown because the course, with its mix of open and wooded baskets, offers a variety of challenges.