Nacos signs to golf at Northern Iowa

WASHINGTON - Many seniors are unsure of a field of study or even a college and if they pick one, it's still up in the air as to why.

When Washington High School senior Anna Nacos signed her letter of intent Wednesday to golf at the University of Northern Iowa, she listed a number of reasons why she made the choice.

1) UNI was close to home.

2) She knew the team well before visiting.

3) A former teammate at Dubuque Walmart plays for the Panthers.

4) UNI is a state school, 'which is helpful.”

5) UNI has good academics.

6) UNI has good athletics.

7) She knows the coach very well.

'I liked it a lot when I visited in October,” Nacos said. 'I know Coach (John) Bermel from way back when I played in tournaments at Cedar Falls.”

Bermel, who grew up in Keota, enters his 27th year of coaching for the Panthers. Bermel was a three-time NCAA Division III All-American, the 1987 Assistant Golf Professional of the Year, the 2012 Iowa PGA Professional of the Year, is a member of the Central College Hall of Fame and the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame. Bermel has competed in the 1994 and 1996 PGA Championships, was the Iowa Section PGA Champion in 1990, 1993, 2000, 2004, 2006, and a five-time runner-up.

'I like recruits from southeast Iowa,” he said.

Bermel said the amount of competition Nacos has played is a great asset, so competing for a spot among the top five Panthers will not be intimidating. 'I am excited to see what she can do in her freshman year,” Bermel said. 'Anna has a chance to be really good.”

Nacos biggest adjustment is the longer yardage. 'High schoolers can hit driver, sand wedge instead of driver, six iron,” Bermel said. 'I'm sure her and Sarah have talked about that.”

Biology would be her major with a possibility of entering the premed program or the pharmacy field.

Nacos' older sister Sarah is playing for Bradley. There's two sets of sisters on the Panthers, but both sets are twins. The Nacos will compete against each other as UNI and Bradley are in the same conference.

The University of Dubuque was a primary rival to UNI. 'They are still in the running to for me to go to the physician assistant program and I really like their coach.”

Until college, Anna Nacos has a lost season of high school to make up for since the COVID-19 erased the 2020 spring sports.

'We should have a very good team,” Anna Nacos said. 'Everyone's already starting to practice. I expect us to be shooting pretty good numbers this year. Hopefully, that will get us back to state and the goal is to win.”