Apr. 17—Head coach: Aaron Berg. Assistants: Tim O'Neill.
Last season: Finished 9th in the Big Nine Conference meet, DNQ for final round of Section 1-3A meet.
Key returners: Sr. Briar Daire (96.0 scoring avg.), Sr. Ciara Church, Sr. Liz Youngman.
Outlook: The Panthers will be an experienced group this season, with five players back who were in the varsity lineup for the Section 1-3A meet last May. That group includes the team's three seniors — Daire, Church and Youngman — as well as juniors Josie Weber and Kasey Morrissey. Daire placed 26th at the section meet and had six rounds in the 80s or 90s last season. Another talented senior, Alivia Lancaster, is unable to play this spring due to an injury. Coach Berg said the senior trio of Church, Daire and Youngman "will lead the way as our younger players will compete to contribute throughout the season."
Coach Berg says: "We have a solid core of experienced players returning. Our goal is to continue to improve throughout the spring so that we can make a push toward the top during the section tournament."
ROSTER
Seniors — Ciara Church, Briar Daire, Elizabeth Youngman. Juniors — Kasey Morrissey, Josephine Weber, Isabella Zemple. Sophom*ores — Claire Graves, Tea McEachern. Freshmen — Kylie Bruce, Cora Erickson, Layla Price. Eighth-grader — Stella Link.
Head coach: Andy Ollenburg. Assistants: Kaysie Otterness.
Last season: Finished 4th in the Big Nine Conference meet, and 4th in Section 1-3A meet.
Key returners: Sr. Bailey Glandon, Sr. Torrey Sears, Jr. Claire Bogenrief.
Outlook: The Rockets had to say goodbye to their top golfer from a year ago, Ava Fevold (88.9 average), but they return four other players who were in their varsity lineup for the section meet last spring — Glandon, Sears, Claire Bogenrief and Cate Bogenrief. Claire Bogenrief (91.7) and Glandon (94.3) were among the top scorers in the area last spring, while Sears also held down a top-4 spot for much of the season. "All three have a lot of varsity experience and have played a lot of golf for us the last 3-4 years," coach Ollenburg said. "All of them do well at adjusting to the course and course conditions."
Coach Ollenburg says: "While we have a lot of experience in our top 3 golfers, we are very young on the rest of the team. We are looking to make a lot growth while gaining a lot of experience this spring. ... I can only remember one other season since I began coaching golf where we were on the course during the first week of practice like this year. The funny thing is that nearly the same thing happened this year as that year. Mother Nature decided to say the joke was on us late in the first week, let the cold and snow show up, and we were not able to get back on the course until April. That is golf in Minnesota, the weather is what it is and you adjust to what the weather gives you. ... Girls golf in the Big 9 will be very competitive this year. There were several younger girls last year who made steady improvement through the season."
ROSTER
Seniors — Bailey Glandon, Torrey Sears. Juniors — Claire Bogenrief, Olivia Ruzek. Sophom*ores — Miriam Brown, Sophia O'Reilly. Freshmen — Cate Bogenrief, Ashtyn Krenke, Esmae Miller, Kaleigh Risser, Amelia Webb. Eighth-graders — Eliza Brown, Madilynn Grimm, Siena Johnson, Lucille Kennedy.
Head coach: Deanna Deutsch. Assistant: Kevin Coughlin.
Last season: Finished 5th in the HVL championship, DNQ for final round of Section 1-2A meet.
Key returners: So. Kendall Powell, Fr. Paige Moeschler.
Outlook: A lot is new at Lourdes this year, which the Eagles see as a positive. Deutsch is in her first season as head coach, with a young but talented roster of players. Lourdes has 12 players on the team, with no seniors or juniors. Powell and Moeschler are the only two players back who were in the varsity lineup at last spring's Section 1-2A meet. Coach Deutsch is the wife of former Lourdes and Notre Dame standout golfer Eric Deutsch. Their daughter Allison has joined the Eagles this season as a seventh-grader; she's one of eight middle-schoolers on the team. Kevin Coughlin, Lourdes' previous head coach, is staying on as an assistant.
Coach Deutsch says: "With no upperclassmen, we are using this year to gain experience on the course and in matches. I hope all of the girls just enjoy the season and come back next year, eager to play. ... When the role of head coach became available, I felt like it was a great fit to be able to grow the program, especially as someone who is invested in its success as a parent, and a 'legacy.' Allison's great grandpa, 'Big Daddy' Deutsch, helped coach LHS golf many moons ago and, having heard countless incredible stories, I hope to carry on the Deutsch tradition of golf at Lourdes."
ROSTER
Sophom*ores — Erin Karau, Kendall Powell. Freshmen — Paige Moeschler, Maggie Raffals. Eighth-graders — Stella Collura, Molly Gilbertson, Laura Nelson. Seventh-graders — Lily Dehnavifar, Allison Deutsch, Bricelyn Gladis, Charlotte Perry, Claire Wittich.
Head coach: Steve Myhro.
Last season: Finished 6th in the Big Nine Conference meet, DNQ for final round of Section 1-3A meet.
Key returners: Sr. Avery Meyer (88.0 scoring avg.), Soph. Flora Bolster (89.6), Sr. Claire Nelson, 8th Dylan Raukar, Soph. Whitney Leimbek, Soph. Clara Dahl.
Outlook: The Spartans return all six of their golfers who were in the lineup for the Section 1, Class 3A meet last spring. That core group is led by outstanding senior Avery Meyer, who placed 10th in the section meet, just two strokes out of a trip to state. Meyer had seven rounds in the 80s last season. Bolster is right on Meyer's heels to be the Spartans' No. 1 player. She finished fifth at the Big Nine Conference meet last season (82), then tied for 22nd at the section meet. They will serve as Mayo's captains this year. "They both have lots of competitive experience and are solid in all aspects of the game," coach Myhro said. ... The Spartans have great numbers this year, with 30 girls out for the team. A newcomer who could challenge for a varsity spot is seventh-grader Sloane Bolster, Flora's sister. Myhro calls her a "very skilled player."
Coach Myhro says: "I feel like we have a team that can compete with any team in our conference this season. Both Avery and Flora were All Conference last season and worked hard in the off season as well as playing lots of summer competitive golf. I'm hoping a couple girls will step up and give us those 3rd and 4th scores that will provide the competitive scores we need. ... My goal has always been to grow the game of golf and do my best to make it fun. I'm excited to see our program grow in numbers."
ROSTER
Seniors — Ruby Ebbert, Veronica Eich, Aaliyah Kamel Eang, Avery Meyer, Claire Nelson, Ana vanKoeverden. Juniors — Shannon Graf, Allison Humke, Jillian Kagol, Lucy Koepp, Lilly Kom, Fiona Nickelson. Sophom*ores — Flora Bolster, Clara Dahl, Whitney Leimbek, Eleanor Pacchetti, Vivian Wall. Freshmen — Georgia Grant, Elizabeth Hill, Carina Johnson, Caroline Stephens. Eighth-graders — Ella Fisher, Josie Meyer, Miette Olsen, Dylan Raukar, Kathleen Sexton, Elizabeth White. Seventh-graders — Sloane Bolster, Aubrey Evenson, Kiran Kaufman.
