First league match foreshadows success for women’s golf team

By Jackson Masiel,
BlueDevilHUB.com Editor–

Despite a sustained breeze, the Davis High women’s golf team posted respectable scores in its first Delta League match of the season against Grant at Davis Golf Course on Wednesday.

Compiling a team score of 208, the Blue Devils defeated the Pacers by default, after two of the six Grant players withdrew mid-match.

Senior Marie Dean led the team with a 2-over par 35, and sophomore Alyssa Yee followed close behind with a 36. Senior Madison Green shot 40,  freshman Unnati Uppal shot 46, junior Anika Kalkarni shot 51 and sophomore Emma Dean’s 52 was not counted.

Marie’s performance puts her in first place in the Delta League standings– although a considerable standing, she sees room for improvement.

“My drives were really good, but I’ve been missing my irons lately,” Marie said. “I played kind of dumb, too. My strategy was dumb.”

Marie is making sure to work hard on her mental game to avoid as many strategic errors as possible in the future.

First-year head coach Brent Watney was impressed with the team’s performance.

“They were probably excited for their first league match, and they performed well in the breeze,” Watney said.

Despite the difficulties the wind produced, Watney was thankful that it kept the temperature and humidity down in the wake of several extreme heat waves.

Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Watney is optimistic.

“The roster is ripe with possibilities; we’ve got a lot of young talent,” Watney said. “If the individuals come through as expected, we should have high hopes this year.”

In fact, with all of the talent, Watney said it will be hard for him to limit the starting lineup to top six, and he always hopes players will step up and challenge those ahead of them. More than anything, however, Watney wants his team to have a good time.

“My biggest hope is, in a highly individual sport, for the girls to enjoy the team aspect of it,” Watney said.