Up to par
Photo provided by: DSP
On Monday, Oct. 19, members of the girls’ golf team pose in the fairway section of the course in Gainesville, FL. The players had a great season and made it all the way to regional finals. The girls remain hopeful that they will have an even better season next year.
November 20, 2020
The girls’ golf team excelled this season. The team experienced many struggles due to COVID-19, from missing players to later start dates mandated by the state. Despite these setbacks, the players persevered. The team competed at regional finals on Monday, Oct. 19. While they did not move on to the state championship, the players still continued on with their individual successes, even with significantly less time to practice.
“The biggest challenge was that we didn’t get to start until Aug. 31,” coach Peggy Leis said. “So, no one was playing any golf over the summer, and then the FHSAA decided to push things back, which, in essence, gave us a six week timeframe and that was it.”
Later start dates mean less time to work on skills. It can be hard for the players of fall sports to have limited practice time before their first competitions. Golf requires a lot of technique, so sufficient time to practice is crucial before matches.
COVID-19 also caused challenges for the already small team. Unfortunately, sophomore golfer Alexa Walsh was forced to quarantine during the season due to contact tracing protocols, which caused her to miss two weeks of play. Nevertheless, Walsh was excited to return to the green for regionals.
“Well, unfortunately I had to quarantine halfway through, so I did miss a good bit of the season,” Walsh said. “Other than that it was great to be on the course again.”
Long practices paid off for the golfers this year. Playing against the best teams in the surrounding region is never easy. Understandably, making it to regional finals was the highlight of the season for many members of the team.
“This season was really good,” sophomore Hannah Williams said. “We had a lot of fun during practices. The best part of the season was when we found out we made it to regionals.”
Going to regional finals at the end of an adverse season is an accomplishment that these players and Coach Leis will never forget. Despite all of the odds against them, the girls’ golf team ended a successful season.
“I don’t remember the last time that we had been there [at regionals],” Leis said. “I was really proud of my kids and that they stuck in there.”
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