Barstow Girl’s Golf has worked hard this season to produce an accomplished team that made it all the way to state.
Led by seniors Niki Adma, Samantha Georgie, and Sophie Yagan, the Barstow girl’s golf team has been a close-knit group ever since the beginning of the captains’ freshman year. With incredible performances, girl’s golf has definitely made Barstow proud, producing two state attendants and an incredible amount of progress.
Girl’s golf has spent countless hours practicing and working hard on their skills to achieve a team with knowledgeable, adept players. Practices are usually held at Lady Sykes Golf Course, but the team also hits at Brookside driving range and various courses around the city. The team practices Monday through Thursday, alternating between different courses and the driving range, creating a rigorous schedule that sometimes posed issues for the players.
“I’m also on the debate team, so balancing both was a little bit difficult,” said Adma ‘22. “I’ve had to alternate work nights versus practice sometimes, or matches versus debate practice, but I’ve been okay.”
Adma ‘22 has been on the team since freshman year, and she recruited many of the current players as a sophomore, cultivating a team of good friends. Because of the time spent practicing and at matches, the team has grown close. A good team bond is important.
“I feel like if we’re having fun at practice, we all do a lot better,” said Yagan ‘22.
Girl’s golf first met on August 11, allowing an early start for the team to see the most progress over the season. The girls then competed in various tournaments, the first of which was against Pembroke Hill High School, Notre Dame de Sion, and St Teresa’s Academy at the Blue Hills Country Club course.
Soon, the team was headed to districts, so the team practiced more vigorously, lengthening their practices to fit in more holes in preparation for the tough competition. At districts, junior Bella Kateusz did well, and the team placed 3rd overall, securing Sophie Yagan ‘22 and Kateusz’ ‘23 spots at state.
The Districts tournament took place at Horton Smith Golf Course, in Springfield, Missouri. After the trip in the well-loved Barstow van, the girls ended their team score in a tie with a few other schools at the tournament.
The long trip to Springfield for Districts was not only important to propel Yagan ‘22 and Kateusz ‘23 to state, but was also an opportunity for the team to bond even further.
“I feel like we’ve all gotten a lot closer,” said Yagan ‘22. “Especially with the drive down to Springfield for districts and then all staying in a hotel together, we all got a lot closer.”
After a phenomenal Districts performance, both Kateusz ‘23 and Yagan ‘22 traveled to State Championships. At Silo Ridge Golf Course in Bolivar, Missouri, both players faced their own set of challenges over the course of 2 days, with 18 holes being played each day.
For Kateusz ‘23, it was the fact that she played with a different putter than what she usually used. “I forgot my putter at home, so I had to use my coaches’, and it was totally different,” said Kateusz ‘23. “And it was just a hard course. For districts, there was no water on the course, and at state there were like six holes that did.”
Yagan ‘22 also felt that she could have played better in the match, but they still both placed exceptionally well. Kateusz ‘23 received 34th place, while Yagan ‘22 placed 75th, out of almost 90 players participating in the tournament.
Along with much practice, some of the team’s success is due to their coaches this year. Nelson Kuhl replaced Coach Krista Kuhl while she was on maternity leave. Mr. Kuhl has proved to be an excellent coach and was the catalyst for Bella Kateusz’s ‘23 golf career. She began playing with Mr. Kuhl in 9th grade, and he motivated her to continue to play for the school team.
“He has taught us a lot and we have all improved a lot,” said Yagan ‘22.
Despite the challenges at state, the season was still full of many highs, and some players experienced their best performances ever. Yagan ‘22 said that her best performance this season was a score of 49 at a 9-hole match and 101 at an 18-hole match, both incredible scores. During a regular high school match, 9 holes are played, and during a tournament, 18 holes are played. Each point during a match represents an attempt to hit the ball closer to the hole, so the lower the score, the better.
For the seniors, this golf season is bittersweet, as many feel that their time has been cut short. Due to COVID-19 sports restrictions, the team did not have the opportunity to play during the season last year, taking away many of the girls’ last few years on the team. Adma ‘22 described the lack of the 2020 season as “really sad,” and Kateusz ‘23 echoed the same emotions. “It was definitely fun this year, but it was also sad because the majority of the team are seniors and they didn’t get to have a season last year,” said Kateusz ‘23.
The rest of the players on the team will miss the seniors immensely, especially since the captains have been instrumental in “encouraging other team members on the field,” as Kateusz ‘23 puts it. Yagan ‘22 said that her mantra while playing is “stay positive,” constantly repeating those words to motivate the team and keep their spirits up even when things aren’t going well.
“Sometimes even if we didn’t want to practice, if we just went and had fun and tried our best it made it a lot better,” said Yagan ‘22.
The golf team’s individual and collective wins, immense growth, and encouraging attitude all demonstrate much more about the team than any win could: the bond that they have is unmatched. The community cannot wait to see what they are going to do next season.
