The girls golf team has a shorter season than many other fall sports, but that didn’t stop them from working hard to accomplish their goals this season, Addison Watanabe ‘24 said. Watanabe was the only LT individual who advanced to the state championship this year, and competed on Oct. 7. 

“I think I played pretty well throughout the season, there are always ways to improve but overall I would say we all did good,” Watanabe said. 

The varsity team placed second in its regional competition, and advanced as a team to sectionals. They placed sixth at sectionals on Oct. 3, and were not able to go on to state together. An individual score of 79 or less is required to advance. Watanabe shot a 78 at sectionals, so she was able to progress, she said.

“State was really fun, but I didn’t play very well. Nothing was working for me during the round and I shot an 86. It was overall a great experience though,” Watanabe said. 

The team had a record of 8-1 in the West Suburban Conference, head coach Jeff Johnson said. 

“The main challenge this season for us and the rest of our conference was Hinsdale Central because of how good they are every year,” Johnson said. 

The eight girls on varsity worked hard to improve, Johnson said. The new players that joined varsity this year especially contributed to the team’s success. 

“This group of girls were capable of performing exactly how they did this season,” Johnson said. “They practiced to improve skills in the off season, and during the season. They all helped each other to earn second place at regionals.” 

The team had a lot of fun together this year, and they all got to be very close in their short season, Kayla Sinars ‘24 said. 

“Our friendships really grew, especially with the juniors and seniors.” Sinars said. “I didn’t really know what to expect going into this season but it ended up being so fun.” 

There were five seniors on the team this year, Maeve McDougal ‘23, Emma Zbella ‘23, Peri Deroche ‘23, Alexa Hoffenberg ‘23, and Jaden Mahler ‘23. 

“We are losing some of our best players with the seniors graduating this year,” Sinars said. “But there are some good freshmen and sophomores that may make varsity next year so I’m hoping the team will continue to be strong.”