The varsity girls’ golf team will head to the Mission League finals with a 7-1 overall record and a 6-1 record in league play.
Their only loss this year was to their main rival, the currently undefeated Notre Dame Knights, who took first place in the Mission League last year. This year’s loss was by only 15 strokes compared to last year’s loss by 28 strokes.
“Like any loss, we were disappointed, but we are still very optimistic, as we lost by much less this year than we did last year,” Rachel Madhogarhia ’17 said.
Furthermore, all of Notre Dame’s top four scorers were seniors in the game, while Harvard-Westlake’s top two scorers were both freshmen. This season, the team does not have any seniors, which ensures they will not lose any core players, while Notre Dame will be hit hard by graduation.
“A freshman [either Karina Gou ‘18 or Josie Baker ‘18] has led us in scoring every game this year,” Madhogarhia said. “This should work to our advantage next year.”
The team responded to the Notre Dame loss with a huge victory over its new Mission League foe, Marlborough School, in an important win on Oct. 7 with a score of 208-215. Led by its young stars, the team has been doing well and is on a three-game winning streak heading into the postseason.
“Being a freshman on the varsity team has been really great, especially since I’ve been able to learn from all the more experienced players on the team,” Josie Baker ’18 said.
The team is preparing for the upcoming league finals on Oct. 23 with a chance to beat Notre Dame and claim first place in the Mission League.
“We are very excited for our chance to play Notre Dame again,” Madhogarhia said. “Recently, we have been focusing more on our mental game, a new strategy we hope will improve our playing.”
The first ever girls’ JV team has also had a successful start to the year, defeating Marymount and splitting a series with Marlborough.
“The JV team is a great atmosphere for improvement and building skills while achieving a goal,” JV team captain Isobel Phillips ’17 said.
